Unholy Needs
by copperheart
Summary: Every child must answer the Night Mother's calling and Thindril is no exception.
1. A Knife in the Dark

Places, characters, events, names, etc... are all from Bethesda Softworks.

The sun was setting down and the sky was slowly becoming darker and darker. A female Dunmer could be seen wandering aimlessly in the middle of the green fields; her body was literally covered in blood and her walk made her look more like a zombie than an elf. She had no idea where she was going and no idea of where she was. Her wounds burnt and her head ached, the sun was setting and she had nowhere else to go, no memory of where she came from and no strength to look for help. She remembered that the sky looked bright red earlier that day and that an endless fire consumed her house, she remembered running and the people screaming, then she fell and rolled down a small hill. She hadn't stopped walking since then.

"Ma'am? Are you alright? Are you from Kvatch?" A male imperial voice asked her, he was sitting on a horse and was wearing armor. She could not see his face though because her vision was too blurry. She stared at him with her eyes half-opened.

"Let me help you, Ma'am." The legion soldier got off his horse in order to help her to get on it. She remembered feeling watched, maybe he was the one watching her all time?

"May I ask your name?" His hands where now holding the horse's reins, every step that the horse made her whole body ache, she wanted to answer, yet she couldn't. Her lips wouldn't move and she didn't have enough energy to say anything at all, not even her own name. Her body ached. There was dried blood all over her limbs. Things went completely dark.

There was something soft beneath her, something like a bed and sheets and a pillow. She had forgotten how that felt like, even though her nightmare only lasted a day. She could see through the window that it was raining outside and she felt watched again.

She tried to move too soon and too quick, the blood had been washed off her body and the pain was bearable now, still, she had to be careful. The pain made her let out a groan.

"Oh! You're finally awake!" A female voice said. "Do you need anything? How are you feeling?" The Redguard was sitting on the corner of the room; she quickly got up and hurried towards the Dunmer with a smile on her lips. "Water…" The dark elf whispered, she hadn't drunken anything for two days now and her throat was completely dry.

"Oh! Of course, come on, raise yourself a little." The Redguard helped her sitting up; she couldn't help but to groan again with the pain while rising. She gave her a mug full of water which the Dunmer drank quite willingly. "I am Sharlian, by the way, Vodus is on duty now. He asked me to take care of you" Sharlian explained while handing her some bread.

"Vodus?" The Dunmer asked before nibbling on her food. That name wasn't familiar to her; she was having a hard time with collecting her most recent memories. Maybe she hit her head somewhere, it was perfectly possible.

"Yes, the Imperial Watch that found you and took you here. You were quite lucky, young lady! May I ask your name?" The Redguard said this quite fast and loud, too loud for someone who had a headache.

"Thindril." The elf said almost in a whisper.

"Well, Thindril, don't worry about a thing, okay? We will take care of you until you're strong enough to start a new life. I need to go downstairs now, but I won't take long. Eat!" Sharlian winked while walking off, she was very energetic and spoke again very fast, perhaps a little too fast for someone who wasn't still all there like Thindril and the elf wasn't too fond of outgoing people. Thindril thought that she didn't have much experience with injured people or else she would be quieter around her.

The elf was still repeating her words in her mind when a dark figure came out of nowhere in her room. Her red eyes stared at him with a horrified look. Thindril had no idea how he managed to do that or who he was. The room seemed to darken as he approached her and Thindril wanted to scream, but all she could do was gasp. Her body tensed as he came closer to her, carrying a small smirk on his face.

"You sleep rather soundly for a murderer." He noted with a hint of curiosity in his voice, his affirmation only made Thindril feel even more terrified. How did he know about her crime? Was he there to kill her? Kvatch was attacked that night, she thought it was impossible for anyone to know that she killed her own husband even that memory seemed to be quite distant for Thindril. "That's good, you'll need a clear conscience for what I'm about to propose." He sounded more serious now, his smirk also vanished which made the elf raise her brow. Thrindril was not following his line of thought, but she assumed by those words that she was relatively safe. The imperial made no threatening move and he would have surely killed her before if he wanted to. He knew that she was naked below those sheets and that made the assassin let his mind wander, but wouldn't make a move for now. His hands were still on his sides and he seemed to be unarmed, yet, Thindril wasn't a complete fool and new that you didn't need weapons to harm someone.

"You prefer silence, then?" His deep tone made it obvious that it was a rhetoric question; Thindril was feeling unbelievably vulnerable by that man. He knew too much about her and she knew nothing about him, only that he was strangely captivating. The Dunmer didn't know if it was his voice or his attitude towards her, he was endearing but dangerous as well, yet, he didn't seem to be a danger to her. "As do I, my dear child. As do I. For is silence not the symphony of death, the orchestration of Sithis himself? Ironic, then, that I come to you now as Speaker for the Dark Brotherhood. My name is Lucien Lachance, and my voice is the will of the Night Mother." She wasn't completely familiar with those concepts, but Thindril knew what the Dark Brotherhood was – a bunch of murderers that had their own cult. It was the first time that she had such a direct contact with them, at least that she knew of.

"She's been watching you. Observing as you kill, admiring as you end life without pity or remorse. The Night Mother is most pleased... That is why I stand here before you. I bear an offering. An opportunity... to join our rather unique family..." His voice was inviting and so was his expression, yet Thindril was slightly more aware of what was happening now, she started to notice and certain hardness in his eyes that complimented his confidence. "The Night Mother watched you kill your husband. We had to… intercept you before you fled Cyrodiil." Her muscles tensed again. "Oh, yes, we also know about your murders in Morrowind. We have been following you since then and I must say that even I was impressed. You were barely fifteen, after all…"

"I do not like your words. Tell me what this is all about. Now." Thindril was weak, she barely had strength to pronounce anything, but she demanded him to go straight to the point anyway. In better days, Thindril would try to not anger such a dangerous man, but at that moment she felt like a rag. All she wanted was to fall in a deep sleep again.

Lucien paused before continuing his speech, he actually seemed to like the fact that she wanted to go straight to the subject. "On the Green Road to the north of Bravil lies the Inn of Ill Omen. There you will find a man named Rufio. Kill him, and your initiation into the Dark Brotherhood will be complete. Do this, and the next time you sleep in a location I deem secure, I will reveal myself once more, bearing the love of your new family." Lucien finally explained.

"That seems to be very interesting, Mr. Lachance." Thindril truthfully remarked, she didn't want to insult him after all. "But who told you that I want a… 'family', rules, duties and someone to worship to?" She noticed now how dark his eyes were, Lucien was a man with strong, but classic features. Her question didn't affect his confidence.

"Thindril, I do believe that the Dark Brotherhood would benefit of having such an asset like you and that you would greatly benefit of having a home and family since Kvatch is now destroyed and overrun by Deadra." Thindril bit her lip, he had a point there. All this was so recent that she didn't even have the time to think about that.

"Fine." She sighed. "Rufio will die by my hand." The Dunmer agreed.

"Excellent!" Lucien looked even more satisfied with himself than before. "Now please, accept this token from the Dark Brotherhood." He said while holding a small dagger and handing it to her. "It is a virgin blade, and thirsts for blood. May it serve you well, as does your silence. Now, I bid you farewell. I do hope we'll meet again soon." The Assassin gave her a small smirk before turning invisible and disappearing. Thindril was incredulous as she stared at the void, holding the dagger in her hands. The sound of Sharlian coming upstairs were soon heard by the Dunmer, she quickly hid the dagger in a gap between the bed and the wall and felt her heart beat faster with the fear of being discovered.

"Oh, you are looking better!" The Redguard grinned.

The Dunmer couldn't help but smirk.


	2. Setting Fire To Their Dreams

It had been over a week since Kvatch and the Dunmer had been regaining her strength. She was now able to walk, shoot and her illusion and destruction skills were slowly returning. Day by day, Thindril felt stronger and secretly craved for the time when she would be able to go to the Inn of Ill Omen and kill Rufio, just as Lucien Lachance had requested.

Yet, Thindril also wanted to pay her debt to Sharlian, who had taken a stranger in her house and helped her heal. Since she couldn't help her grow her crops for now, Thindril did the cooking and cleaned anything that didn't require much effort. Sharlian often said that it wasn't needed, but Thindril did it anyway – she did everything to keep her mind busy and not go mad with the waiting.

Sharlian said that in a few more days the Dunmer would be completely healed, Vodus came to the farm once in a while and helped her heal with his skills in Restoration, lately he had come far too often. Sometimes he even spent the night there; Thindril thought that he had something going on with Sharlian, or at least he wanted to. At first she hadn't notice, but sometimes Thindril found the look he gave to her rather inappropriate. The Dunmer had heard rumors of Imperial guards with dubious morals, but she couldn't tell that it was true since she avoided having any contact with them.

Until one night he went too far.

"There." The Imperial said while tracing her scratches on her stomach with the tip of his fingers, a red light came from his hands and made the injuries less deep and closer to heal. His hand traced her skin to her hip, his unusual touch made raise an eyebrow to him.

"You're almost healed." He smiled, still with his hand on her hip. "I do hope you're thankful."

"I am." Thindril told him, moving a bit for him to stop touching her hip, but suddenly his grip tightened. "Show me." He suddenly asked.

"What?" Her red eyes opened.

"Show me how thankful you are." Vodus breathed to her ear while moving his hand to her butt cheek, grasping it now. Sharlian was still working on her crops, Thindril eyed the door.

"Not in that way, Vodus, I'm sorry." Thindril said while pushing his hand away, but the Imperil resisted. "It's not an option." Vodus smirked before forcing her to turn around. "What? No! Stop!" Thindril screamed. "Shar…" Her call was silenced by Vodus' spell and she was suddenly paralyzed as well. The Imperial's hands were all over her, making the Dunmer feel dirty and disgusting. Vodus soon took off her pants and whispered to her while grasping her breasts. "This will be quick because I don't want Sharlian to catch us, but you will not enjoy it anyway."

Thindril felt his hard member poking her slit, she would had screamed and try to fight him off if she was able to move but the Dunmer was completely defenseless. He soon pushed himself in and started to bang her. It hurt, it burned inside in a terrible way. Thindril felt even angrier because she wasn't able to close her eyes and pretend that she was not there and that it wasn't happening to her. Vodus said it would be quick, but to her he seemed to be taking ages. However, after a while, Thindril soon found herself being able to move the tip of her pinky finger, then her hand, and then she started to regain the control of her whole body. Vodus seemed to be too into pleasuring himself to notice this, yet Thindril waited a few more seconds before she was sure that she could control her movements.

A small fireball formed in her hand, she turned around and burned Vodus right in the face. The Imperial wasn't expecting her to move so he was clearly taken by surprise. The Dunmer continued to burn him, half naked and with an expression of utter anger and hatred. "You Imperials are all the same." She yelled while burning the man. "You fucking pig!" She spat at him, blood was running down her legs and her insides ache. Thindril suddenly found herself feeling nauseous which made her stop burning him and throw up on the floor. That made her lost control of the fire, making it start to burn the house.

"What's happening in here?... Oh, by Akatosh, what is this?" Sharlian asked, her brown eyes were filled with fear.

"The pig raped me!" Thindril coughed after she finished throwing up. She reached her pants and dressed them as fast as she could while looking at Vodus twitching in pain.

"Who? Vodus?" Sharlian asked, still not believing in her eyes.

"Yeah, that fucking waste of skin." Thindril snarled. "Gods, I'm bleeding and the fire is spreading, we need to get out." She breathed, the flames were now on the floor and was reaching a wooden bench that Sharlian had in the living room.

"What? No, this is my house!" The Redguard protested.

"Your house is on fire, Sharlian!" Thindril tried to reason her.

"Yes! Because of you! And Vodus is dead!" The woman accused her. "You bitch!" She unsheathed the dagger that she usually carried, but the Dunmer was quicker. She tossed fireballs to her chest, making Sharlian shriek in pain and fall down. The flames soon started to consume her as well. Thindril's next worry was The Blade of Woe, it was in her room and the elf needed to retrieve it. She hurried upstairs, depending on her natural resistance to fire to survive, Thindril quickly grabbed the dagger and a coin purse in Sharlian's bedroom before heading again downstairs. She gave a quick glance to Sharlian, the woman was still alive and screaming when she left. _Too bad_, she thought.

Thindril let the fire consume them both. She felt no regret.


	3. The Path of the Void

The rain poured down the mountains. The Dunmer was only wearing a dark blue shirt made of linen, leather pants and leather shoes. At least her feet and legs were dry, not that it mattered much anyway. The almost forgotten pains from Kvatch had suddenly return with Vodus' unwanted advances. To the elf walking was painful, running was painful, breathing was painful - all kinds of movements were painful, yet, it was bearable for now. The Blade of Woe was still tied in her belt and it would soon kill Rufio. If the elf was lucky enough, she would be able to make it to Wawnet Inn that night. The elf did not want to stop in Skingard, Chorrol or in the Imperial City for she was scared to be recognized by people that she met in her formal life - the formal talks would delay her and she honestly didn't have much patience for them at the moment.

At the time the only thing that kept her going was the possibility of a whole different life. Thindril had been playing the same old tricks for too long, and honestly she was getting bored of it. That was also one of the reasons why she murdered her last husband – boredom had entrenched their lives and Thindril was not a woman who liked routine. Of course that his affair with the neighbor also helped, Thindril was planning to kill his lover in the next month but the Deadra took care of it. They could sometimes be charming creatures.

The rain was not heavy but it had already drenched her long red hair. The few travelers that walked past her gave a weird look – all those people carried hoods, cloaks and gloves while Thindril was wearing summer clothes. It had bothered her at first, but now she was used to the cold. The worst thing was that the weather was slowing her down – Thindril had been walking since dawn. The farm where she lived was in the road between Kvatch and Skingard and Thindril barely knew if she was going to make it to the Imperial City that night.

Thindril was lucky to walk past a merchant that morning and buy him some food with Sharlian's money. Only the fruit that she bought him and her determination helped her keep going. Thindril had heard rumors of more Oblivion gates opening around Cyrodiil, so she stayed in the roads. As if the wilderness was already dangerous enough without the Deadra lurking around.

It was already dark when she finally reached the Wawnet Inn. An Altmer, Nerussa, was the owner of that inn for quite a few years now. She asked the Dunmer if she wanted wine everytime that Thindril walked into that inn, this time she also remarked that Thindril's clothes were wet, but she ignored it. Thindril only wanted a bit of stew, a warm fire and then a warm bed.

Her exhaustion and poor health made her sleep more than ten hours. She had a surprisingly calm and dreamless night, but was suddenly waken up by the terrible aches that attacked her body. Her basic skills of Restoration would calm the pain down, but Thindril knew that she wouldn't go far without a proper healing. It would be a matter of time for her body to start collapsing, not to mention the scars all over her body that would mark her forever.

Nerussa had sweetrolls and more fruit for sale, Thindril soon stashed her pockets and the small sack she always carried with her with food. The Dunmer was happy to find that unlike the day before the sky had now cleared. It was sunny and warmer; her clothes were also drier, but still humid. Nonetheless, Thindril was happy that the day that was about to unfold would probably went better. There were even birds singing outside and thanks to the rain, the fields seemed fresher and greener than ever – a perfect day for a murder.

The Dunmer went south, taking one of the main roads that headed to Bravil. Despite the fact that her whole body ached, Thindril found herself with a little more energy than the day before – maybe she was just urging to be in control again or maybe she just wanted to see Lucien Lachance and hear him tell her that she was about to belong to a new family. Her hope was giving her strength for now and that was all that mattered.

-T-

He was there in the day when she set fire to the house. The Dark Brotherhood was a powerful organization, therefore its members knew what was going to happen before it did. Lucien knew that his latest recruit would burn down the house of the woman who took her so kindly, yet, he didn't know the reasons. Lucien would ask her in due time.

He had not followed in her way to the Inn of Ill Omen, no, the Dunmer wouldn't need his watchful eyes in her trip. Lucien had wondered though, what took her so long and why she looked like she was in constant pain. He and all the Cheydinhall sanctuary were very glad that they would have a new sister, especially after the disturbing events of a murderer amongst murderers. Ocheeva, the sanctuary's mistress, also said that a new face would be a breath of fresh air. New recruits always helped to keep the brotherhood young.

A day and a half after the fire, Lucien travelled to the Inn of Ill Omen, watching Thindril come closer and closer to fulfill her destiny. He could feel that her true place was with the people in the sanctuary and not wandering around Tamriel like she had been doing for years. The Speaker put on his chameleon ring and shoes before walking into the Inn, remaining unseen as expected. Lucien arrived first than Thindril who only walked in when the Inn closed; she apparently preferred a stealthy approach to the job. Lucien was one of same type as well – the type who is able to hide in the shadows and kill in the dark like he was never there, yet it was wildly known the Speaker could also stage a public execution if necessary.

Around one o'clock in the morning the Dunmer walked into the inn and went firstly upstairs. She was incredibly silent in her moves, but Lucien was also aware that her light clothing and leather shoes helped her to sneak around. He saw her casting a spell that later he presumed that maybe it was a detect life spell for the elf seemed to know the occupied rooms. Unfortunately none of the sleeping guests were Rufio, making Thindril go downstairs again. She looked around as she was looking for an extra door that would eventually lead her to her prey. The Dunmer soon found a hatch that leaded to the basement and decided to give it a try, if Rufio was hiding from someone, it made sense for him to sleep in the darkest rooms in the Inn.

Lucien continued to follow the elf, he had now the chance of standing closer to her for the corridor was larger than the others and noticed something different in her look. A certain instability could be seen in her red eyes, Lucien had obviously noticed that something had changed since she burned down the farm and his curiosity grew on him. He also wondered if whatever happened to the elf had affected her too much.

It didn't take her long to be in her prey's room. Surprisingly enough, Thindril woke Rufio up. She had the perfect chance to send him to the Void without the old man proffering a word, yet she had chosen not to. Lucien wondered why. "Who are you? What do you want? I ain't done nothin'!" The man inquired, Thindril just gave him a small sneer.

"Oh, but you have, Rufio…" She drawled while tightening her grip around the Blade of Woe.

"No! Please…! I didn't mean to do it, y… you understand me?" He stammered. "She struggled! I… I told her to stay still, but she wouldn't listen! I had no choice!" Thindril's expression had sudden taken by her wrath and disgust towards that man. Rufio tried to flee, but she soon pushed into the wall, cornering him like a wild beast. Her first stab was in his shoulder, the old man cried in pain before she hit his stomach with her knife, making him fall on his knees. Her last stab happened after she kicked him to the floor, the Blade of Woe pierced his groin, making Rufio squirm and gasp with the pain. Luckily for her, he had no longer the strength to scream. It took him less than a minute to die. Thindril watched the life leave his eyes and seemed to be enjoying every minute of it, yet she wasn't smiling. The only expression that she carried was her stiff and focused gaze on the man. Once he was dead, she cleaned her dagger with Rufio's old sheets before leaving.

Lucien watched the show and was without a doubt surprised by her reaction. He knew one more thing about his newest sister – she had been raped, he didn't know when or who raped her but Thindril was still clearly affected by it. The Speaker would bear that in mind in the next time he would talk to her, which would be soon.

-T-

The Faregyl Inn was located north of the Inn of Ill Omen, both inns were quite close to each other and were in the same road, except that the Faregyl Inn was a much nicer place with proper beds, good food, and apparently no rapists. Since Thindril didn't know if Lucien would send her next to the north or south, she decided to stay in the same location. Without spending much time in the reception area, Thindril rented a room and headed upstairs to get some rest. She only had twenty septims left and hoped that it would be enough until Lucien came to visit her again, because if not, the Dunmer would soon live on the streets.

Her body wasn't aching that much, she wondered if the rush of adrenaline had helped her, or maybe the sweet scent of murder took her to another reality – a reality where she was now the one in control of the rapist's life. Her red eyes examined again the Blade of Woe, its blade was sharp and its hilt was beautifully decorated with golden cravings that also adorned the blade. It was her most precious value now for the elf had lost everything in Kvatch – her books, her gems, her collection items and last but not least, her home.

Thindril put the blade on table next to the bed, founding herself to be taken by a sudden sleepiness. Her eyelids closed and it only took her seconds to fall into a, effortless deep sleep.

"_Sleep, sister, sleep._" A deep and calm voice told her. There was a hint of familiarity in that sound that made Thindril do as he asked. Yes, she would sleep. For now.


	4. The Color of Night

A good, warm feeling invaded her body. Thindril didn't remember feeling this good for weeks; she also felt a small pressure on her back which made her slowly open her eyelids. Thindril jumped at first when she saw a man standing next to her, fortunately it was just Lucien. "Don't touch me." She snarled, glaring at him.

Lucien didn't seem to be offended by her aggressive reaction, instead, he remained rather indifferent. "I was healing you… sister." The assassin replied.

"Sister…?" Thindril raised her eyebrow.

"The deed is done, that makes you part of the family." Lucien explained calmly, he looked the same since Thindril last saw him – a tall man with olive skin, wearing black robes with a hood over his head.

"How can you possibly know that?" Thindril said in a defensive tone.

"How do I know that? You will find that the Dark Brotherhood knows a great many things." Lucien answered vaguely. Thindril bit her lip and remained quiet.

"Now heed these words." He said. "The slaying of Rufio was the signing of a covenant. The manner of execution, your signature. Rufio's blood, the ink. As a Speaker of the Black Hand, I directly oversee a particular group of family members. You will join that group, and fulfill any contracts given." His deep voice drew her into him, there was something quite captivating about Lucien and Thindril didn't know what made him so special. Yes, he was handsome, but it was more than that, a way more."You must now go to the city of Cheydinhal, to the abandoned house near the eastern wall. Enter the basement, and attempt to open the black door. You will be asked a question. Answer thusly: "Sanguine, my Brother." You will gain entrance to the Sanctuary. Once inside, speak with Ocheeva. She will guide you once you arrive home."

"You said you were a Speaker of the Dark Brotherhood…" Thindril drawled.

"Indeed, I am." Lucien nodded to the elf.

"What does that mean?"

"I am a representative of the Dark Brotherhood." He began. "My voice is the voice of the Black Hand, our organization's ruling body. One of my duties is to find exceptional individuals, such as yourself, and offer a place within our family."

"And why did you chose me? There are many murderers in Tamriel." Thindril questioned.

"The Night Mother has her ways to know what distinguishes you from the common bandit." Lucien's lips formed a small smirk. "You and I, sister, were bound to be assassins. This is our destiny. It would come to us sooner or later."

Thindril was sitting on the bed, yet she looked like a cornered animal. She was hugging her knees and avoiding looking at him directly, Lucien was starting to feel rather inquisitive about that abrupt change, yet he didn't want to scare her. He was afraid that by doing so, the elf would flee her destiny and not go to Cheydinhal.

"You said you were healing me, right?"

"Yes, sister. Look at your injuries. They should be almost good by now." Lucien replied.

Thindril lifted her shirt and saw that the scratches on her stomach almost gone, Lucien was a far better healer than Vodus. She now wondered if the Imperial guard was trying to see as much of her naked skin as he could before he got impatient or if he was just downright incompetent.

"Can you make the pain go away?" Thindril looked up to him, finally facing the man in front of her.

"Yes." He nodded before holding her arm gently and casting a Restoration spell. "These are burn scars." Lucien noted. "And they are recent." He had managed to gain a bit of her trust for now, the Speaker hoped that she would tell him what happened.

Thindril looked down and closed her eyes. She enjoyed the feeling for a few seconds before replying. "The last man that tried to heal me also tried to hurt me."

Lucien kneeled down in front her, making the elf look to him again. "What did he do?" Thindril cringed at bit to that question. He had stop healing her, Lucien was now only holding her arm between his hands.

"I don't want to talk about it." She replied. "You know very well what he did, you don't need me to answer."

_Smart elf_, Lucien thought. He wanted her to say it, but he would spare Thindril for now. She would have plenty of time to face her traumas. "Well, I am glad that you killed him sister. You are a natural and you murdered two rapists. You should be proud. Once you're in the Dark Brotherhood you will see that most people you murder aren't that innocent after all." He told her.

"Yet the Empire hunts us." Thindril noted.

"No, my dear, Adamus Phillida hunts us. Most people of the Empire are intelligent enough to keep out of our sight." Lucien corrected with a smirk, he noted that Thindril had softened her gaze. Good, maybe she would be less jumpy now. Lucien had heard about her husbands, how she had been windowed several times and how they had all suffered strange deaths. Thindril could had performed the Black Sacrament or hired the Morag Tong to kill them, yet she always chose to kill them by her own hands. Lucien wanted to know why, but he would also ask that later. Everything in its due time.

"Do you live in that Sanctuary?" The Dunmer asked.

"No."

"Will I ever see you again?"

"Yes."

Lucien got up and so did Thindril, he was ready to leave when her look tied him down. Her red eyes were very mysterious, once they had been wild and with a slight hint of mischief but now Lucien had the feeling that she was just inviting him to stay for his company gave her some kind comfort. He cupped her cheek and leaned to her as he was almost kissing her. Thindril remained still, but didn't push him back.

"We will see each other again, sister." Lucien promised a low tone with his signature smirk before pulling back and leaving her alone in the room.

-T-

Thindril had to pickpocket her way into the abandoned house. She guessed that it was her second test. The elf soon found her way to the basement and noticed a dark hole in the wall and presumed that this sanctuary would be in its depths. Thindril had to watch her steps to not fall on her way down, she saw a red light in the distance that made her think that she was in the right way. It soon became clear that the red light came from a huge door with terrible cravings on it, there was a huge skull at the top that seemed to be looking down a woman. That same woman was holding a baby and a knife, four more children were on the ground, begging her to not to kill them. There was a sound, something like a heartbeat. For moments Thindril thought that it was her own heart that was beating too loud for she as terrified with that sight.

"_What is the color of night?"_

The elf jumped at the sound of the voice, it seemed like it was the last whisper coming from a dying body. She tensed.

"Sanguine, my brother."

"_Welcome home."_

The door opened and Thindril walked in. The Sanctuary seemed to be a normal place compared to what she had just experienced, the first person she saw was a female Argonian. She had green scales with hints of red and purple, like most Argonians, she was very fit and about the same height as Thindril. She was also wearing dark light armor which immediately took Thindril's attention. The armor seemed to be quite comfortable and it fit her body perfectly, it also seemed to be made of quality leather, the elf wondered if she would be getting one as well.

"Welcome, Thindril! Welcome! My name is Ocheeva, and I am the mistress of this Sanctuary. Lucien has already told me all about you. Welcome to our Sanctuary, sister." The Argonian greeted her cheerfully, Thindril gave her a small smile. "You stand now in our Sanctuary. May it serve you as your new home, a place of comfort and security whenever the need arises." She paused "Lucien told me that you might be very tired, he also told me about Kvatch and that meanwhile you had an incident with a burning farm. Once we are done talking, you can rest if you wish." Ocheeva added.

"Oh, that would be wonderful. Thank you." "Thindril nodded.

"Good. There isn't much to know about this Sanctuary. This is the common room, here is where we gather and speak to each other and relax. The door on your right leads to the dormitory and the bathrooms, on your left you have a training room and in the corridor in front of you there is my room, Vicente's room and the kitchen." The Argonian explained while gesturing around and pointing to the places. "When you're ready for work, go and speak with Vicente's Valtieri. He handles all the assignments for the new family members." Ocheeva finished.

Thindril nodded. "Understood. Anything else?"

"Yes, before you go, please accept this gift from your new family." Ocheeva said while grabbing a set of armor that was laying on a table and handing it to her. "A unique set of armor, lighter than normal leather and black as the Void."

"Thank you, Ocheeva." The elf smiled while holding her new armor.

"Go rest now, Thindril. You need it. Your bed is the last on the left. May Sithis be with you." The Argonian finished while walking her to the sleeping quarters. Thindril soon found herself in a dark and long corridor that was only lightened by two or three torches. The Dunmer wondered if making her way through the dark without falling down was part of some kind of training for she could barely see her feet.

She soon found her bed in the sleeping quarters. Thindril took the Blade of Woe from her belt and put it aside on top of the armor. Her last two weeks had been hell, but that would change now. She was finally home and she was finally safe.


	5. Sweet Comfort

She was feeling watched. Thindril _hated_ to feel watched, especially when she was _actually_ being watched and especially when she person that was watching her was someone that she _didn't know_ yet.

"Oh, you're awake, sweet sister!" A blonde girl grinned while Thindril slowly opened her eyelids. The girl's voice was sharp and loud. Too loud for someone who had just woken up.

"Who are you?" Thindril asked abruptly.

"Antoinetta Marie!" She answered in a rather bubbly-ish manner. "I heard your name is Thindril! Do you like the Sanctuary so far?"

"I've barely seen it." Thindril answered idly while putting her shoes on. She was feeling so starving and even though she barely knew the Breton girl, Thindril wanted to get away from her and her annoying voice as soon as she could.

"Oh, you need to know your way around here, yes, yes!" Antoinetta nodded. "I was so excited to hear that we were going to have a new sister! We're going to be great friends!" She grinned.

Thindril sighed. "Okay, Antoinetta, let's have some rules in our relationship, alright?" She told her, still rather sleepy. "Firstly, you don't stare at me when I sleep. I know when I am being watched." She paused while getting up. "Secondly, don't speak so loud. You're giving me a headache." Thindril notice Antoinetta's grin slowly disappear from her face. "And thirdly… spare me the cheap talk. I had enough of that during the parties that my second husband liked to organize." Thindril stood up and looked down to the Breton, smiling politely. "Other than that, it is nice to meet you." And with that said, Thindril left the sleeping quarters and headed to the kitchen, leaving the annoying Breton alone.

Thindril would just grab something to eat before meeting this Vicente Valtieri. Her stomach was growling and threatening to eat itself. Once in the kitchen, she saw a bunch of sweetrolls on the table and took the liberty of eating one before heading towards Vicente's room. She knocked the door gently and waited for his response.

"Come in." A soft, but firm voice echoed inside the room. Thindril walked in and closed the door behind her, her eyebrow raised slightly when she noticed that Vicente Valtieri was a vampire but she kept her cool since he didn't seem threatening.

"Oh! There you are!" The vampire smiled to her, showing his sharp fangs. "Please, have a sit."

Thindril sat in front of him. "Please, do not let my appearance… unnerve you, Thindril." He started. "The needs and Tenets of the Dark Brotherhood come before my own needs as a vampire." Vicente explained, smiling again.

"Oh, no, it doesn't unnerve me." Thindril told him and smiled back. "I must admit that I was surprised. It's not everyday that you see a vampire, but when you think about it, it makes perfect sense." She said and then smirked. "After all, vampires are natural hunters."

"Indeed, sister!" He nodded. "That's one of the reasons why I joined our family. Here my qualities are greatly appreciated, but enough about me. What can you tell me about you?"

"I lived in Kvatch, I was married five times, I like painting and reading. I used to collect things but the Deadra burned my house down." Thindril shrugged before chuckling. "I'm good at manipulating people and at learning how they work. I think that can be rather useful in this job, right?"

"Yes, Thindril, I heard about your dead husbands. You are the black widow if the family, huh?" Vicente chuckled, Thindril smiled. The fact that everyone in Brotherhood seemed to know that she actually murdered her husbands made her a bit uncomfortable, but proud as well. "As one of the oldest members of this family, I provide assignments for all the new family members and I also provide training. We are going to spend much time together for you will need that training in order to fulfill more... complicated contracts." Vicente paused before leaning back on his chair. "However, I do have a simple contract for you. Do you think you're ready to accept it?"

Thindril nodded. "I am all ears."

"Since you are new to our family, I must explain you what a contract is really about." He started with his calm and soft voice. "A contract is a secret pact one enters into the Dark Brotherhood. They provide us with gold, and we remove someone from existence."

"The Black Sacrament, yes…" She whispered, more to herself.

"Yes, one must pray to the Night Mother to contact the Dark Brotherhood. This contract is fulfilled by a skilled assassin such as yourself, who keeps the Dark Brotherhood's end of bargain. So it has always been. Most contracts allow you to gain bonuses if you are able to meet some parameters." The vampire paused. "Any questions?"

"No, please proceed."

"Good." Vicente smiled. "Now, I do not know how you feel about pirates, but you've got to kill one. A captain, in fact. On his ship. Surrounded by his crew. Interested?"

"Very." She gave him a small smirk and leaned forward to him.

"Excellent. Here is what you must do. Go to the Waterfront District in the Imperial City. There you find a ship named the Marie Elena. Board the ship and kill its captain, Gaston Tussaud. He'll be in his cabin. You can eliminate Tussaud in any manner you see fit." Vicente explained with a small note on enthusiasm in his voice.

"I know that man, he used to be one of my husbands' friends." Thindril paused before sneering. "He was such a pig."

Vicente laughed lightly. "Oh, then that will give some extra fun, huh?" He paused before leaning forward like he was about to tell her a secret. "The pirates have been moving a lot of cargo lately. You maybe be able to smuggle yourself onboard in one of the packing crates."

"Yes, that could work." Thindril nodded. "It would definitely be better for me to wait instead of attacking the whole crew."

"Exactly, get into the habit of asking your fellow siblings about any current contract. Their insight may be proven invaluable." Vicente advised.

"Yes, after all, you are all far more experienced than me, right?" The Dunmer smiled.

"We are. But it's not everyone who kills five men and lives to tell the tale, Thindril." Vicente smiled while poured some blood into his coup. "I'd offer you some, but I am afraid that you would not like its taste."

She chuckled. "I probably wouldn't. Thank you, anyway."

"We will start your training in Fridas, I trust you will survive this easy contract. If you manage to slip into the boat, you will probably only have to unsheathe your dagger to kill Tussaud." Vicente then got up and finished. "Now I must take my leave. I also have contracts to take care off. May you walk in the shadow of Sithis, sister."

"You too, brother." Thindril smiled and walked off to common room. In there she saw other family members that she hadn't seen before. There was another Argonian, this one was a male and with red scales, a tall and large orc and a wood elf. All three were sitting around a table, laughing about the orc's latest contract. His voice was so powerful and deep that it echoed in the whole Sanctuary.

"Oh, look!" The Bosmer smiled when she saw Thindril. She was very tall and thin, but also muscular. "Aren't you our newest sister? My name is Telaendril, it's so nice to meet you!"

"You're Thindril, eh?" The orc asked. "I am Grogon gro-Bolmog, just call me Grogon. My name is too damn big, I know. This is Teinaava." The orc pointed to the Argonian who nodded. "It's very nice to meet you, sister!" The lizard said.

"Likewise!" Thindril smiled and nodded. "You all seem to know my name already, huh?"

"Yes, Ocheeva told us about you. Have a seat, sister." Telaendril said. "Let us talk, have you met everyone already?"

"I've met Ocheeva, Vicente, Antoinette and Lucien, obviously." Thindril answered.

"Oh, she hasn't met M'raaj-Dar." Grogon noted in a suspicious tone.

"Who?" Thindril asked.

"The Khajiit." The Argonian explained. "He is a good friend once you get past his… suspicious nature."

"Yet…" Telaendril sighed. "Listen, sister, we don't want to scare you off but M'raaj-Dar isn't looking forward to meet you." The Bosmer warned.

"Why?" Thindril raised her eyebrow.

"That cat is a bit of an anti-social." Grogon shrugged. "Oh, but I know he will warm-up to you! It's a matter of time, you shouldn't be so worried, Telaendril! You might frighten our newest sister." He chuckled.

"Oh, don't worry, I am used to not be liked by people." Thindril laughed. "I can always ignore him."

"Yes, that works best, sister." Teinaava nodded. "And it's the smartest attitude."

"Well, no matter! The rest of us are quite happy to have you here!" Telaendril grinned. "So, tell me, how long have you been in Cyrodiil?"

"About fifteen years, I think. I moved here when I married my last husband. He was an Imperial and people in Morrowind were starting to talk too much about my other husbands' mysterious deaths." Thindril smirked slightly. "So I had to move, you see."

"What? You killed all your husbands?" Grogon raised his eyebrow. "A hell of a danger, that's what you are woman. Have you ever killed one of your kind?"

"My kind? Female? Well, yes…" Thindril bit her lip while remembering the incident at the farm. Surprisingly, that day now seemed to had happen long ago. Her integration in the Dark Brotherhood helped her get through the agony that it had caused her, yet, it still hurt to remember it. "But I was defending myself, does that count?"

"No, not really." Teinaava chuckled. "Was it a bandit?"

"No." She answered plainly, hoping that they wouldn't ask any more questions.

"So, do you have a contract already?" Telaendril had noted her discomfort towards the matter, unlike the other two family members. Thindril was relieved when she changed the subject and gave her a thankful look. "I do, indeed." Thindril answered with a small smile.

"Let us hear it, then!" Grogon exclaimed.

"I have to kill captain Gaston Tussaud, he owns the Marie Elena. You know, the big ship in the Waterfront district?" Thindril explained.

"Pirates, eh? They tend to be quick, and good with a blade, but don't favor armor. They're not fond of bows or spells, either." Telaendril commented.

"Yes, but I will kill him inside his cabin, so a bow wouldn't really be useful." The Dunmer explained. "I know a little about destruction, though." She smirked.

"The Marie Elena, you say?" Teinaava wrinkled his nose, or at least Thindril thought he did. She was never good at deciphering Argonian's expressions. "I've seen that ship. There's a unique balcony at the stern. My guess is it leads to the captain's cabin. Could be useful." He smiled.

"Oh, really? I'll use that balcony to leave the boat unnoticed then and then I can swim." Thindril said, more to herself.

"Yes, that sounds wise. It is not pleasant to face an angry crew." Teinaava noted.

"Eh, I would smash some skulls if I were you, but whatever." The orc paused before grinning. "The great thing about killing a target up close and personal is you can talk to 'em before you do it! You know, say something scary!" His laugh roared in the Sanctuary again as he remembered something funny. "For example, this one time I had a contract to kill a little Nord girl at her birthday party. She asked me if I was the jester! So I said to her."No, I am a messenger of death." You should have seen the look on her face!"

Teinaava shared his laugh, Telaendril shook her head but smiled. Thindril was firstly shocked but ended up laughing as well. "I won't even want to know how you killed her."

"I choked her to death, or at least it was my intent, I actually ended up breaking her neck." Grogon shrugged. "Anyway, she won't be seeing age six!"

"I will work on my speech while waiting inside the crate. I am going to smuggle myself onboard." Thindril smirked. "I will have plenty of time to think."

"Just make sure you make the most of it, sister. That's the most important, oh, and keep yourself alive as well." Telaendril advised.

"Surely! Dying would be so embarrassing. I would hate to disappoint you all" Thindril chuckled. "I will be off my way, then." The elf said before getting up. "Thank you for your advice!" She smiled to them.

"No problem, sister!" Teinaava nodded. Thindril then headed to the sleeping quarters to get her dagger and put her brand new armor on. The Dunmer noticed how the armor fit her perfectly, like it was almost her own skin. As Ocheeva said, it was also quite light and comfortable. Thindril tied the dagger to her belt near her waist and left the Sanctuary, heading to the South gate. She felt rather excited about her first contact, but rather nervous as well. One thing was certain, honoring her family was all that mattered for now.


	6. The Speaker's Rumors

She had waited long enough inside the crate. The pirates left her in the lower levels of the ship and headed outside a while ago. It was her chance now.

Sneaking was much easier when you could mingle well with the shadows. Thindril's movements were quiet and her mind was clever. It was not hard for her to make her way to the Captain's cabin. Unlike the crew's rooms, Gaston's cabin was richly decorated and was quite large. He had always been an arrogant bastard and now he was going to pay for it.

"Gaston." She drawled to him, making him raise his head from his book. Thindril leaned on the door and smiled. He was balding and uglier than ever.

"Thindril? What in blazes! Wha… What the 'ell, lass! What are ye doing 'ere?" He asked with his thick and annoying accent while putting down his book. Thindril didn't know he could read.

"I heard you were around and so I decided to pay you a visit." She answered while walking to him and then sitting on his desk.

"What happened to yer husband? Heard he got killed in an expedition." Gaston inquired.

"Yes, by bandits. Very tragic." Thindril said. "And now you will do something for him."

"What?" He asked while raising his eyebrow.

"Sithis demands you to go make him some company in the Void." The elf smirked before piercing his chest with her dagger between his ribs and hitting one of his lungs. Gaston didn't even have time to react, his eyes went big before he started growling. It was a matter of time before the pirate to start choking in his own blood. Thindril retrieved her dagger and let him fall on the floor, Gaston coughed a couple of times before dying. His brown eyes were still wide open and filled with pain. Thindril chuckled at that sight but her moment of glory was soon interrupted by his crew knocking the door.

"Captain, are you alright? We heard some noises…"

"_Shit…_" She breathed. Thindril tried to open the door to the balcony, but it was closed. She looked for the key on his table but she only found it in the captain's body.

"Captain, we're coming in!"

That was the last thing she heard after closing the door behind her. Thindril was now in the balcony and soon jumped into the water, making more noise than she should. Fortunately, Thindril was a good swimmer, which allowed her to stay below the surface for a long time. That part of the river was also known by having lots of seaweed, making it easier for her to hide. She soon got out of the Waterfront district, taking very brief pauses to breath. Thindril had no idea if the pirates had seen her or not and neither did she care for the elf was now relatively safe. Her mind was set in getting to the Sanctuary as soon as possible.

Thindril only swam to the shore when she was completely exhausted. From that distance, the boat was now just a lost form that mingled with the rest of the Imperial city and Thindril could barely see it. Her feet and arms were very tired, so the elf decided to sit on one of the rocks that decorated the shore for a while. She tried to catch her breath for a while, but her adrenaline didn't let her calm down so easily. Her heart kept pumping, her mind was racing and her legs were shaking from all the effort and exhaustion. Thindril couldn't remember the last time she felt so alive.

-T-

"What's up with that smell, sister?" Ocheeva asked.

"I decided to take a bath in Lake Rumare after murdering that Pirate." Thindril replied while a mischievous smile.

Ocheeva smiled, or at least she thought she did. Thindril was terrible with Argonian and Khajiit expressions. She sometimes even wondered if they were about to bite everytime they smiled. Thindril could only tell what they were really feeling by their voice tone.

"Go talk to Vicente, then. And for Sithis' sake, go take a bath once you receive your payment." Ocheeva said.

"Yes, sister." Thindril nodded. She was slowly getting used to calling everyone sister or brother, it was firstly weird to her because Thindril actually had a brother who she hadn't seen in ages. The elf didn't really miss him though, she was not too much into her family and barely spoke about them at all.

She pretended not to see Antoinette walking out of the kitchens while going to Vicente's quarters. Once there, the elf knocked the door and waited for his response before coming in.

"You survived as expected. Excellent." The vampire smiled. "Have a sit."

Thindril sat on the chair in front of him. "No one will mourn the pirate's passing, and Sithis has been appeased." Vicente continued before handing her a ring. "Please accept this Black Band as your reward. It is a ring whose powers are quite useful to those who value… discretion."

Thindril smiled back and put the ring on. "Thank you, Vicente." The ring was made of black steel and had a black stone incrusted with silver cravings around it. Thindril took her time to admire it before Vicente spoke again.

"You will begin your training tomorrow at six o'clock in the afternoon." The vampire informed.

"What am I going to learn?" The elf asked curiously.

"Sneak attacks. Then I shall help you improve your bow technique and then you will learn a bit about alchemy. A powerful poison can make your job much easier, as you can imagine." Vicente explained with a small smirk. "Now, go take a bath sister. No offense but you smell like mudcrabs."

"I know, I'm sorry." The Dunmer chuckled. "Thank you, Vicente. See you tomorrow." She nodded before leaving and heading to the bathroom to clean herself up.

If it isn't the newest member of the family…" A hash and thick voice spat at her. The Dunmer raised her eyebrow at the sight of the Khajiit in front of her. He was wearing blue magic robes and black gloves. "Let's get one thing straight, the Tenets prevent me from killing you. But I don't have to like you." The cat explained with the same tone. "I'll sell you equipment, but only because Ocheeva is making me. This family doesn't need any... outsiders."

"Thank you for unrequested opinion." Thindril said in a very idly tone before leaving him. "_Foul-smelling ape..._" The Khajiit muttered behind her, he was probably expecting a more aggressive attitude from her, but the elf honestly did not care much about his opinion. Thindril had been greatly disliked by many people during her whole life. By now she would had already learned how to ignore them and the cat would have no different treatment.

The bathroom was fortunately empty. Thindril grabbed her usual linen shirt and her leather pants, making a mental note to buy more clothes once she had the money. She took off her armor and exposed her body to the bathtub's warm water. The elf rubbed her body with lavender soap and then with some lotion. It would not be normal to have a bathroom decorated with skulls, but the Dark Brotherhood had obviously to make a difference. There were also red roses spread around the room that gave it a very sweet aroma. It was a bit of a macabre environment, but very comfortable.

Once her bath was over, Thindril put her clothes back on and left to the common room, searching for something to do. She had spotted some interesting books about her newest family that she wouldn't mind reading, the elf didn't know much about her new family yet and she was starting to find it slightly shameful, especially when Thindril had a natural curiosity about almost anything.

"Ah, there you are, sister!" Teinaava said while opening his arms holding her arm gently. "We've been waiting for you!"

Everyone but Ocheeva, Vicente and M'raaj-Dar were in the common. Thindril blinked at that unexpected meeting. "Why?"

"We have a rite of initiation, you see. Something that we do amongst ourselves…" Grogon explained. "We organize a little party everytime a new member fulfills their first contract."

"Yes, yes! And we are so eager to start!" Antoinette exclaimed with a grin. "Come, sit with us! Vicente said that he will spend an hour or two with us once he's done with some paperwork." She paused before giving her a bigger grin. "Lucien may visit us today as well."

Thindril's ear ringed at the sound of his name. Lucien was coming, for some reason that thought made her slightly excited and warm in a good way. Thindril wasn't interested in him yet, but she definitely found him interesting. Part of her wished that he had kissed her in their last meeting, but at same time it was better to keep her distance for now. Lucien was her superior, besides he seemed to be the type that liked a good chase.

"So did any of those pirates give you any trouble?" Telaendril asked.

"No, not really. I am the sneaky type." Thindril replied while Teinaava was filling all their cups with mead or ale, depending of what each person wanted.

"Ahhh, nobody knows the joy of a true fight here…" Grogon lamented.

"Look at your size and look at mine!" Thindril chuckled. "No, I want to keep myself alive as long as possible."

"Yes, and that's the only way in our profession." Teinaava nodded. "But enough of all this talk about business! Let's make a toast!" He raised his cup.

"For the Night Mother and our newest sister, here!" Telaendril said with a smile while raising her cup as well. Everybody drank the warm and sweet liquid. Thindril was very fond of alcohol and she hadn't drunk in a while. She would try to take it easy.

Antoinette, though, filled her cup right after the toast and started drinking again. "I've seen one of those Gates to Oblivion near the Nibenay Valley, in the beginning of the Panther river…" Grogon said. "I rarely worry about those… affairs from the outside but… those gates sound like they are serious business."

"Yes, and have you seen Kvatch? A whole town was destroyed right after the Emperor's murder…" Telaendril wrinkled her nose. "There's one near the Black road as well. I heard the Imperial legion is trying to keep the Deadra off the roads, but it's no easy job."

"Thindril… You're from Kvatch, aren't you?" Antoinette asked curiously. "How did you escape?"

"I don't know." Thindril answered plainly before taking a sip of her mead.

"Oh, but don't you remember anything?" The blonde insisted.

"There was fire and screaming. Part of my house went down, I think. I just remember running." The Dunmer shrugged, she didn't like to talk about that subject, especially when she barely remembered anything.

"I heard that someone closed it and that the same person is closing gates all across Tamriel." Telaendril informed. "Maybe Cheydinhal won't have the same fate."

"We can only hope that." Teinaava agreed before sipping on his drink.

"I'm sorry for insisting on this, Thindril, but if a gate opened here in the city, would you think that we would make it?" Telaendril asked. The Dunmer remained quiet for a while before answering. "The Sanctuary is well hidden. If it manages to keep it that way during an attack and if it doesn't catch fire, then yes." She paused before sneering. "But those things… they like our meat, they crave it and they can smell it… It would be a matter of time."

The silence grew heavy. For a few minutes they didn't look like they were celebrating at all, but things started to change once the alcohol started flowing in their veins. Soon, the topic of their conversation revolved around funny events in contracts to silly jokes.

"The Speaker will be delighted to see his assassins drunk and tripping in their own feet!" Vicente exclaimed while walking in the common room. The situation wasn't actually that serious for Lucien himself had been a member of the Cheydinhal Sanctuary and knew how things worked in there.

"Vicente! Come, celebrate with us!" Teinaava invited, his voice was a little louder than usual. Vicente took the seat between Grogon and Teinaava, Thindril noted that Antoinette gave Vicente a weird look like she was avoiding to glare at him but the vampire ignored her. "So, what were you talking about?" Vicente asked.

"About that time when Grogon tried to cast a charm spell but ended up casting a frenzy one instead…" Telaendril started to chuckle again.

"Oh that! Wasn't that your third contract? You were just a boy, back then!" Vicente smiled.

"I was old enough to swing my axe on the guy's face!" The orc grunted while hitting the table with his fist, making one of the empty bottles fall on the floor and break. Antoinetta had jumped with the sound, but still had a creepy smile on her face. She gave a dreamy look to the ceiling before asking. "Is Lucien coming, or not?"

"Yes."

A familiar deep voice made Thindril raise her look. She was relieved that she hadn't drunk enough to make her look like a fool, instead, she exchanged looks with the Speaker. His dark eyes lingered on her before turning to Vicente. "Good night dearest family." He greeted with a polite nod. "Vicente, may I have a word?"

"Of course, brother." He replied while getting up. Silence fell for the second time in that room and Antoinette kept that silly smile on her face, once Lucien was gone, she turned to Telaendril and whispered. "Oh, you think he has come to visit me?"

"I think you had too much mead. Come, let's go to bed." The Bosmer helped Antoinette to stand up. The Breton continued to babble but Thindril didn't hear a word of what she said. Antoinette was interested in Lucien and the elf felt the jealousy build inside her.

It was not that she felt threatened, Antoinette was not Lucien's type at all or at least she didn't seem to be, yet the fact that the Breton was interested in the same man as Thindril combined with the fact that Thindril found her stupidly annoying made her fume with anger.

"That girl will never learn…" Teinaava shook his head.

"Learn what?" Thindril asked, trying to control her curiosity.

"That Lucien sleeps with her only because his Silencer is a male." Teinaava answered.

Thindril chocked on her drink. "Wait… what? Lucien sleeps with Antoinette?" She paused. "What the fuck!" The alcohol and the jealousy made her swear loudly, Thindril could feel her blood boiling in her veins. It all had changed now.

"Yes, the poor girl thinks that one day she will have Ocheeva's place if she keeps sleeping with him." Grogon laughed like it was the most ridiculous joke he had ever heard. "If she had a brain she would see that if something happened to Ocheeva, her position would be given to Vicente, then to Teinaava and then to Telaendril." The Orc paused. "For Sithis' sake, he would rather have one of us two in charge of this Sanctuary than that air-headed girl. I shouldn't be saying this, but she must be an easy fuck for him, that's all."

"It's the truth, though." Teinaava shrugged and Thindril's jaw dropped. She was torn between not wanting to see Lucien ever again, killing Antoinette or pulling her hair out.

She drank what was left from the bottle of mead instead.

-T-

Her arms were around him and her tongue was on his neck, inviting him to go further.

However, his will to go further was none.

"What happened? Did I displease you?" Antoinette asked, a small hint of fear could be seen in her eyes.

"No." Lucien muttered and let go of her.

"Then… why are you acting like that? Is there something wrong?"

"No." Lucien was a Speaker. He had a way with words and everyone knew it, yet he was not looking forward to explain to Antoinette that he couldn't have sex with her because all his thoughts would be on Thindril. Antoinette wasn't that great in bed, she was just a diversion, yet he sometimes had the feeling that she wanted to be more than that.

Antoinette remained quiet, sitting on the corner of the tub. "Go sleep, you're drunk." Lucien told her before leaving her alone. He waited and made sure that Antoinette actually was sleeping before starting to search for the Dunmer. Lucien had heard about her first contract and was very satisfied with her success, he wanted to tell her that personally.

To his surprise, the elf was actually in the training room, casting fireballs to the target. She had this expression of anger in her face that made Lucien ask himself what had happened. He had never seen her so angry.

"Thindril."

The elf stopped. She was breathing hard and trembling.

"What is wrong, sister?" Lucien drawled.

Thindril looked like she was trying really hard to keep her cool. She took a deep breath before answering. "Nothing."

Ah, women loved to say that.

"Thindril, I am your Speaker." He explained calmly. "You are going to tell me what is wrong." Lucien drawled while walking to her and putting his hands on her shoulders. He noticed her cringe at his touch, but that wouldn't make him stop. "_Now_." He ordered.

The elf remained quiet. She was testing his patience. Lucien turned her around and looked down to her, Thindril was glaring to him. She was giving him the deadliest look that he had ever seen her giving to anyone and Lucien wanted to know why. Since she refused to speak, he picked the most aggressive approach. Lucien leaned down and kissed her roughly while pinning her against the wall. Thindril first brushed her lips against his before biting him hard and making him bleed.

It took him by surprise. Lucien was about to punish her for her insolence before hearing her low, but harsh voice mutter close to his ear. "I can still smell her stench on you…"

"How do you know?" He froze for a second.

"I was married five times. Trust me. I know." Thindril uttered before leaving the Speaker alone in the training room, feeling completely disarmed towards the elf who had just refused him. Lucien was angry, very angry. Firstly he wanted to kill the Dunmer for her disrespect but then he wanted to kill Antoinette. Why did she throw herself to him? Why was she so stupid? She had to be incredibly dumb to believe in him, especially when he never promised her anything. It was all her fault! All hers! She was the one to bear the guilt! Not him!

_That's what you get for creating rumors, Lucien._


	7. Accidents Happen

**Thank you all for the reviews! They mean a lot :) about the future of Lucien and the Brotherhood, I've been planning to make a sequel of this with the Skyrim's quests, sooo yeah, there's still a lot to write and a lot to read. Stay tuned and please, give me your opinion! I am open to any suggestions and constructive criticism.**

**Enjoy!**

"It's all in the way you twist your wrist, sister." Vicente explained while holding gently the elf's wrist and helping her to hit her target with her dagger.

"And I thought that slashing throats was actually easy." Thindril joked.

"It is, but this way you will hit the artery right away." He replied with a smile. "And then, if you have the time and the space, make sure to catch the person's body and lay it down on the floor as gently as you can."

"Right." Thindril nodded.

"Remember, during your life in this Sanctuary you will have to kill people who are physically stronger, faster and bigger than you." He paused before sheathing his dagger. "They might scream, call the guards, disappear or run off. It all depends on the way you do things."

"I know… Did any of those things ever happened to you?" The elf asked.

"Once, one of my targets disappeared right in front of me." The vampire paused and studied her with his look. "What do you do when that happens?"

That question was a small test, Thindril knew it. "Cast a detect life spell or wear anything that detects life. I wouldn't see the target but I would know their location."

The vampire smiled widely, showing his fangs again. He was pleased with her answer. "Do you know anything about magic, Thindril?"

"I am good with Destruction and Illusion spells, I can also do some basic Restoration. That's it." She told him.

"Are you part of the mages guild?" Vicente asked curiously.

"No, I don't consider myself a mage, you see." Thindril told him. "I just like to learn and I found Illusion to be quite useful in younger years. One of my husbands was a mage as well." The elf smirked. "I guess, I will need again to use my knowledge in that area soon."

"Yes, I think every assassin should know a little about Illusion. I tried to teach it to Grogon, but it didn't go well." Vicente chuckled lightly. "He is great for contracts that include public executions, though. Also, Telaendril is a great sniper, Ocheeva and I are great to close combat, M'raaj-Dar is great with potions. You will find your specialization soon enough."

"I see." The Dunmer nodded. "I suppose that you have seen many talents…"

"Oh yes, sister. I know who has the spark and who doesn't, there are the common bandits, the lowly murderers like Rufio, the ones that are actually good enough to join us and the rare talents." Vicente affirmed. "I call them rare talents because joining the Dark Brotherhood can dramatically reduce your life span, as you can imagine. Only few survive past their tenth contract."

Thindril eyed Vicente and thought that he probably had a lonely existence. He watched everyone join the Sanctuary and later die, leaving with all alone. His existence was immortal, yet Vicente was still surrounded by the curse mortality. Thindril felt sorry for him.

"Yes." She agreed. "We elves also last longer, so I kind of understand what you mean."

"Mortality can be seen as gift sometimes, trust me Thindril." He smiled. "Even though I would not exchange my powers for my mortality nor even for my old appearance." The vampire paused. "Anyway, I need you to do me a favor."

"I am all ears." The elf replied.

"I need you to buy some ingredients for our next alchemy lesson." Vicente requested. "I would do that myself if the sunlight wasn't that painful."

"Surely, just tell me what I need to buy and I will go get it." Thindril nodded. Vicente gave her a list before she left the training room, once outside her ears were soon assaulted by an irritating voice that echoed the halls.

"Sometimes, right before a kill, Sithis speaks to me. He whispers in my ear and fills my heart with the joy of suffering and death!" Antoinette exclaimed to Telaendril who raised an eyebrow in response. "He speaks to you, sister? How?"

"I don't know, he just speaks to me everytime I crave my sword on their bodies and watch them die in agony." Thindril didn't stay there to listen to Antoinette's babbling. The elf had never heard anyone talking to her while she was killing someone, Thindril had felt watched though. She didn't know if Antoinette was lying or not and neither did she care, but Thindril had noticed that she had the habit of showing off. The Breton girl often babble how hard her life was before the Sanctuary, how Lucien saved her, how she craved Ocheeva's position. The Dunmer was almost sure that Ocheeva knew about her ambition, yet, she wondered why she wouldn't put Antoinette back to her place. Maybe she didn't consider her a threat to her position, which was true.

Thindril had found herself to avoid Antoinette's company as much as she could just like M'raaj-Dar's. She avoided eating with them, training with them and even sleeping at the same time as them. Surprisingly enough, the cat didn't annoy her as much as Antoinette. He surely threw his cheap insults to Thindril, but it didn't affect her very much. Antoinette was an entirely different matter – even her breath bothered the elf.

But Thindril did her best to remain calm. The elf would never let her know that she was terribly jealous of the fact that she slept with Lucien. No, Antoinette would never know that. Besides, the Speaker didn't think highly of her and that gave Thindril some comfort.

Lucien, on the other hand had been gone for more than two weeks. Thindril was torn between hoping to never see him again and wanting him back in the Sanctuary as soon as possible. The elf was glad that she didn't tell him how she knew about his not-so-secret affair with Antoinette. She would hate to give any trouble to Teinaava or Grogon. Thankfully and despite all these small issues, the rest of her family was very dear to her. She even grew found of Schemer, the rat and Bob, the Dark Guardian that guarded the Sanctuary day and night.

The most curious thing about the elf's behavior was that even though Cheydinhal was her new home, Thindril rarely found herself outside of the Sanctuary. Its darkness was now familiar to her, she even noticed that her eyes would now hurt if the sunlight was too strong. Luckily for her, winter was on its way making it usual to snow in Cheydinhal. The city reminded her too much of her home, Morrowind, firstly thanks to its architecture and secondly because she would bump into a Dunmer in every street. Fortunately, Thindril was not a very melancholic person and could brush aside most of her honorable and fragile feelings.

The only thing that Thindril truly missed about home was the fact that no one looked the Dunmeri with distrust. In the Empire they were often called traitors, whores, cursed and other pleasant names. Thindril bet that she had been called a whore much more times in her lifetime than most women who actually were whores. It was the easiest insult to say to any woman, anyways. By the time she had already developed a natural defense towards the word.

Thindril did her shopping in the Mages Guild, for there was no official alchemist in Cheydinhal. Luckily, she managed to get everything she needed for her next lesson. It was widely known that the Cheydinhal Mages Guild had a poor reputation. It was not that they were bad, but they simply weren't spectacular at anything. Falcar, the head of the local quarters of the guild, didn't put much effort into the place either. Thindril wasn't too much into the Guild's issues, but she had heard some rumors. Everyone kind of blamed him for their situation in Cheydinhal. Falcar seemed to be rude, careless and simply unpleasant. In past Thindril would have just ignored him, but now, with her new profession she felt tempted to kill him. The elf would control herself, though, Thindril had many flaws, but she wasn't that reckless.

She managed to leave the Mages Guild without unsheathing her blade. Since Thindril was a Dunmer, she mixed well with the local population and most people hadn't noticed that there was a stranger walking around the streets of Cheydinhal. Thindril made sure that she wasn't followed though, the secrecy of the Sanctuary was holy to her, besides, Vodus' unwanted advances were still alive in her memory. In some nights she still had nightmares with him, but the elf hadn't mentioned this to anyone. It wasn't easy for anyone to say that she had been raped and especially not for Thindril. She was used to use and abuse men, not the other way around.

Back in the Sanctuary, Thindril saw Ocheeva discussing something with her twin, Teinaava. They both turned to Thindril once she approached them.

"Oh, there you are, sister!" Ocheeva greeted with a nod. "Go see Vicente, Lucien was here. He just left, actually; I think you might have a new contract waiting for you."

The Dunmer just nodded to her and headed to Vicente's quarters. Lucien came to the Sanctuary after disappearing for two weeks right when she was in the city buying ingredients? Thindril didn't know if he did on purpose, but the Dunmer knew that deep inside she was glad that she hadn't seen his face.

Thindril saw Vicente's door open once she was downstairs. "Brother?" she called gently, wondering if he was there.

"Thindril? Come in." He said, but not with his usual inviting tone.

"By Sithis, what happened to you?" Thindril asked, slightly horrified. His face was all red with some weird bubbles, it was like he was having some kind of allergic reaction except that Thindril hadn't seen anything like that before.

"Nothing, Antoinette just decided to put garlic in her food again and I can't even stand the smell of it." The vampire explained. "I will feel better soon, though, let me just close the door."

"But why does she do that? Does she know that you're… allergic?" Thindril didn't really know what word she should use to describe his condition.

"She does, sister, she does." For the first time Thindril saw anger in his eyes. It was good to know that she was not the only one who disliked Antoinette. "But anyways, I've got a contract for you."

"So I've heard. I am all ears." The elf nodded.

"Good, I think this is your type of kill, that's why I reserved it just for you." He gave her a small smile. "So, we need you to stage an… accident. Kill the target in the manner specified and you will receive a considerable bonus. What do you think?"

"Sounds interesting." The elf smirked.

"As I expected. The target is a Wood Elf named Baelin. You will find him at his home in Bruma. Enter secretly and avoid his manservant, Gromm." Vicente explained.

"Gromm? Sounds like a Nord." Thindril wrinkled her nose.

"I thought the same. Luckily for you, on the second floor there is a secret door leading to a crawlspace. Inside are the fastenings of a mounted head that hands over Baelin's favorite chair." The vampire told her. "Loosen those fastenings any night between eight and eleven o'clock and the mounted head will kill him for you."

"It seems simple if I can sneak past Gromm." Thindril nodded.

"Yes, but you, dear sister are allowed to receive a bonus if everything goes as planned." Vicente explained. "To have this bonus you must not kill Gromm or eliminate Baelin in any other way, understood?"

"Yes, brother. I will go to Bruma right away." Thindril said while getting up. "By the way, here are the ingredients you asked me to buy." She told him while handing him a small sack. "Get well soon!"

"Thank you, dear sister. May Sithis go with you." Vicente said while getting up. "And have fun!"

"Oh, I sure will." Thindril smiled mischievously. She would love this.

-T-

"Lucien, Jon has been murdered." The Khajiit told him with a worried tone.

"Jon? The Breton from Anvil's Sanctuary?" The hooded figure asked.

"Yes, he was in your Sanctuary a few years ago."

"I knew him. I knew him rather well actually." Lucien sighed and rubbed his eyes. "By Sithis, this is driving me insane!"

"You know it is a matter of time before people start talking about the Purification…" The Khajiit uttered, watching closely Lucien's reaction.

"You're sounding like Ungolim, J'Ghasta." He grunted. "I wonder why the Night Mother has chosen him, he has only consideration for the Sanctuaries in Valenwood… oh and Chorrol's because he's sleeping with Elegil."

"Brother, don't let him catch you saying that." J'Ghasta chuckled. "Besides, you're sleeping with Antoinette, Lucien… he might accuse you of being a hypocrite." He reminded him.

"I was sleeping with her. Not anymore." Lucien corrected. "And I don't really care what he thinks about my private life."

"Uh... does she know about that?" J'Ghasta asked. Lucien just shook his head which made the cat laugh. "She will go mad."

"Too bad for her, then. I never promised her anything." Lucien shrugged after finishing his mead.

"And why are you ending your… thing with her? Is she that obsessive over you?" J'Ghasta asked curiously.

"That too." Lucien nodded, not wanting to speak about Thindril just yet. "Do you think I should tell Ocheeva about Jon's assassination?"

"Why wouldn't you?"

"If there's a chance that we are going to kill them… Maybe we shouldn't let them know…" He sighed before finishing the sentence. "By Sithis, if I could just put my hands on this damned traitor…"

"But who do you think the traitor is, brother?" J'Ghasta asked while refilling his cup.

"That's the problem." Lucien sat up on his chair. "I have no idea, none at all, J'Ghasta." He rubbed his eyes and shook his head before numbering. "I raised Ocheeva and Teinaava, I know they wouldn't betray us. Vicente has all my trust; he's like a big brother to me. Telaendril avoided Robert from being murdered by bandits the other day. Antoinette loves me, or at least she thinks she does. Grogon would never do that, you know him and M'raaj-Dar might have a short temper but he does love the Night Mother and the Sanctuary." Lucien sipped on his mead. "They have all my full trust despite what has been happening."

"And how is that new recruit doing? Is she a dark elf?"

"Yes, Thindril. She has been doing good. She must be on her way here now." Lucien answered, avoiding speaking too much of her.

"Really, why?" The Khajiit raised his eyebrows.

"She is going to kill Baelin."

"Oh, I do hope Gromm doesn't kill her then." J'Ghasta replied before laughing.


	8. Sweet Madness

Bruma was too cold for Thindril's taste. She didn't wait long to get out of the city once she was done with Baelin. His crushed skull was one of the nastiest sights that Thindril had ever seen, making her kill very satisfying – yet there was no time to waste. Soon, after the deed was done, the elf headed south and noticed the trees getting greener and greener by each step she took. Their shadow hid Thindril well, avoiding her from being seen by curious eyes, however, a fire in the distance attracted her attention.

Thindril came closer, avoiding stepping on anything that would announce her approach. She sneaked and hid herself behind some rocks, nothing that the fire was just the beginning of something more horrifying – a Gate to Oblivion.

She gasped as her eyes went big. It was not nearly as large like one that appeared in Kvatch, but it was equally horrifying to Thindril. There were three hooded figures near the gate and they were speaking. The three people were far away, but they were speaking loud enough for Thindril to hear them. Apparently they didn't notice the Dunmer yet.

"Is this the last one for today?" One of them asked.

"No, we are still going to open one near in Bruma." The tallest one whispered, by his accent, Thindril could tell he was an Altmer. "Right in the middle of the night… Martin Septim won't be able to sleep after this."

The three people laughed together and left the place, the elf tried to recognize them but their hoods didn't allow her to see their faces. Thanks to the rocks and the shrouded armor, Thindril remained unseen. To her misfortune she was also petrified and didn't dare to move from those rocks, the Deadra soon started to come out of the gate, making their usual growling noises.

_Don't panic, don't panic. Oh shit._

The Blade of Woe was still tied in her belt, but Thindril would dare to touch its hilt. She was too afraid of being heard, seen or smelled.

"Little elf, stupid elf. What did you get yourself into?"

A hooded figure appeared in the darkness, it was surely Lucien by his deep and calm voice yet she jumped at the sound. Thindril felt a sudden rage build inside her, not because she was still mad at him, but because he caught her in that ridiculous situation. How could he possibly know that she was there?

Also, she hated when people called her stupid.

"Why so quiet?" He whispered with a smirk. "Come, take my hand before those things spot us."

Thindril hesitated at first, but since she had no choice, she eventually grabbed his hand and followed him. "How did you know I was there?"

"The Dark Brotherhood…"

"…knows many great things, yes, I know, but how?" She interrupted him.

"Thindril, you should ever interrupt your superior, especially when he is _the_ Speaker." Lucien warned.

"I apologize then." Thindril noted that he wanted an argument, or at least make her feel utterly inferior. She wouldn't give him such joy.

"What were you doing there?" He asked after a brief silence.

"_Curiosity killed the elf._" She shrugged, noticing that she was still holding his hand. For some reason and despite she was still angry with him, the elf acted like she hadn't notice it. It made her feel relatively safer.

The Speaker smirked. "I see."

"Did you see those guys?"

"I did, sister." He nodded.

"Do you know who they are?"

"I honestly have no idea." He answered bluntly.

"But you said…"

"The Dark Brotherhood knows many great things, yes, but murdering the Emperor would be suicide." Lucien explained. "And we are feared by all Tamriel, we do not need that kind of advertising and we honestly don't care about such matters as long as they don't affect us."

Thindril wrinkled her nose. "Where are we going?"

"Somewhere safe." He answered plainly while interlacing his fingers with hers and pulling her closer.

"Stop that." She snapped.

Lucien stopped and looked down to her. "You do not wish me to stop." He drawled but Thindril just rolled her eyes, refusing again to play his game. "There's an inn in Bleaker's Way." Lucien replied after seeing her reaction. "It is a small village near here."

"Are we supposed to share a bed tonight?" The elf raised her eyebrow, not really looking forward to that. She was afraid of what she might do with that man sleeping next to her.

"Of course. I do not want you to bump to another Oblivion Gate." Lucien explained, pulling her closer again and walking faster. "It is not my fault that you are so careless."

"Is this some sort of punishment?" The Dunmer asked. "Or are you just trying to make fun of me for your private amusement?"

"Oh, Thindril, please…" He smirked. "You should not have such thoughts about your Speaker."

"You are right, but it is not mind fault that my Speaker's actions tell me otherwise." The Dunmer muttered, but Lucien smirked instead. They both rushed to the village for the wind was starting to carry the sound of howls that came from the north and was also spread their scent making them vulnerable. Thindril had no choice but to stay with him. Thankfully, they soon noticed the village's weak lights and headed to the place. Once they were inside the inn, he rented a room in the basement and then headed to it.

Thindril still didn't believe that he was making her do this, but she promised herself that she would make an effort to not look too angry. He did want her to feel like she was being punished, but Thindril wouldn't give in so easily. Inside the room, Lucien did not take off his robes – not even his hood. He just laid down on the bed and closed his eyes. Thindril raised an eyebrow to his actions, but didn't say a thing. She just removed her dagger and the metallic parts of her shrouded armor before laying down next to him as well, turning her back to Lucien and hoping to not see his face during the night.

Surprisingly, Thindril was having a hard time in falling asleep, his breath wasn't loud, but it bothered her. So did his smell, his warmth, his presence…

"I know you cannot sleep." He whispered, leaning to her.

"I guess I can say the same about you, then." The elf replied.

"Thindril…" Lucien whispered while placing his hand on her waist.

She grabbed his hand and moved it away. "You're with Antoinette." Thindril interrupted but he just laughed.

"For Sithis' sake…" He sighed. "Not even my enemies wish me such thing!" Thindril tried to remain serious but in the end she could not help but to chuckle a bit at his answer, especially when it came out with such honesty.

"Believe me, I was never romantically involved with her, I just…"

"Fucked her occasionally?" The Dunmer asked.

"Yes."

"And now you want to fuck me occasionally instead?" Thindril asked.

"No." Lucien shook his head. "I want you all for me. All of you."

"Are you sure?" Thindril smirked slightly. "I murdered my last five husbands." She reminded him.

"I was never into marriage…" He whispered, his lips were getting closer to her neck and giving her goose bumps.

"You get the idea…" She replied in a lower tone as well.

"You wouldn't do that." His breathed to her ear.

"You're right, I wouldn't." Thindril admitted while turning around and facing him.

They kissed, firstly in a teasingly way before finally giving in to their instincts. Thindril felt trapped but in a good manner. His hands soon went to her back and slowly started to undress her. His touch was not gentle, but it made her feel wanted like never before. His hands were grabbing every part of her body, trying to explore it as much and he could. It didn't take long for Lucien to finally remove the rest of her armor, not letting her touch his robes for now by holding both of her wrists with one hand. The elf was completely defenseless towards her Speaker. It was a weird and unusual feeling, but it was also something that she had never tried or felt before.

It took seconds for Thindril to be completely naked in front of him. Lucien leaned down to kiss her but she pulled him away. "Take off your hood… and your robes. I want to see you." She whispered. The faint light that illuminated the room barely allowed her to see his face and she didn't like it. Lucien first removed his hood, revealing his long brown hair. Thindril was surprised. She never thought his hair would be that long, but it suited him rather well. He then worked on his robes with her help, Thindril noticed that they were put in an odd manner so she let him do the job, only helping him when they were already loosened.

Once he was fully naked, Thindril wrapped her legs around him and pushed him to her. Lucien smirked to her reaction. He started rubbing himself in, and teasing her first. "What are you trying to do with me?" She asked before biting her lower lip.

"You will see." Lucien replied while grabbing her legs and putting them over his shoulders before pushing himself in. Thindril arched her back and gasped, she hadn't been with a man for a while. Vodus didn't really count and her last husband had hated her for over a year. Being with someone that she actually liked was nice for a change.

His lips circled her nipple before nibbling on it and looking up to watch her reaction. Lucien then traced her soft mouth with his thumb, gasping with her. He brushed her red hair out of her face, allowing him to see her expression full of pleasure. The elf was soft, warm and addicting, her hungry look and soft moans told him that she was enjoying it as much as him. Lucien wanted to see more of her, though, but the weak light only allowed him to see a glimpse of her luscious body. His hands, however, could feel her curves, making Lucien let his mind wander. Thindril grinded to him as much as she could, she knew she was not in control and she strangely didn't mind it. The elf didn't mind to be his or to be controlled by him. Actually, Thindril found herself only wanting to be tamed by her Speaker.

Their lips met once again, now with his both hands grasping her breasts. Thindril felt Lucien thrust his hard shaft faster and deeper, making her moan louder. He smirked, or at least she thought he did while gasping harder. It took him only a few more thrusts before making her come, Thindril moaned, perhaps a little too loud, while wrapping her hands around his back and scratching him. Lucien soon followed her after feeling her sweet folds contract around him. He finally groaned, burying his face on her neck and breathing heavily. They stood in that position for a few moments while regaining their consciousness. Thindril held him against her, not really wanting to let him go just yet but also not wanting to make that wish too obvious.

Lucien soon sat up on the bed. Her legs still around him and spread. The tip of his fingers traced her thigh up to her hips, he soon found three scratch-like scars that crossed her stomach. His look lingered on her scars but his thoughts were soon broke by the elf. She cringed and slapped his hand away before turning her back to him.

"You never really told me what happen at the farm." Lucien whispered.

"You know what happened…"

"You will have to face it sooner or later, Thindril." He interrupted. "Say it, it will be easier to go through it if you just tell me…"

"You fucking know what happened!" She yelled while punching the nightstand. Her scream echoed in the basement and was probably heard upstairs, her red eyes that had been filled with pleasure minutes ago were now full of anger and hatred. Lucien wondered how she could change her mood so fast, he studied her expression, or tried to. The lightning wasn't helping at all. The Speaker knew that it would not be smart to touch her now, he had seen that look before and knew what it meant. Fortunately for the Dunmer, he was willing to learn how her personality worked.

"It has been a long day. Sleep now, sister." He finally whispered. Thindril soon found some comfort in his calm voice and relaxed a little. She laid down next to Lucien, but facing the wall. The Speaker quickly fell in a deep asleep.

Thindril didn't.


	9. Rotting Ghosts

**This chapter will be more about Vicente. I am thinking about making his character more important than he was in the DB quests and give the plotline some variety. Also, thank you for all the alerts and views!**

Thindril woke up, struggling at first to remember where she was and what had happened last night. A note on the nightstand next to her quickly helped her remember.

_Dear sister,_

_I apologize for not waiting for you to wake up, but I have pressing matters of the Black Hand that need my immediate attention._

_I will be closely watching your progress._

_L.L._

The elf reread his note, a small smile appeared in her face everything she read his last sentence. Lucien would be watching her which was comforting and she would not let him down.

Her long and skinny fingers traced the letters, they were round but not girlish. His handwriting was refined, classic and simple. Thindril liked it for she had noticed that most Imperial's handwriting was messy and confusing.

She first took a bath before leaving the inn. Lucien's scent was still on her and she didn't want anyone back in the Sanctuary know about their encounter, especially not the Khajiit. Those cats had their senses accentuated and it could be… troublesome.

Once her bath was over, Thindril but her shrouded armor back on. She folded Lucien's note and stuck it between her skin and the armor, making sure she wouldn't lost it along the way. The Dunmer then left Bleaker's Way and head east to Cheydinhal. She remained on the roads to avoid those Oblivion Gates that were suddenly infesting Cyrodiil and all the creatures that were lurking around them. The day was sunny, but cold. Thindril could see the White-Gold Tower between the trees and wondered how it would feel to kill a man in the Imperial City. The thrill of being catch or not by the Imperial Watch, the dark alleys, the corrupted guards, perhaps maybe a little chase in sewers would be definitely something word living, as long as Thindril wasn't caught or killed in the end.

It also reminded her of her old life. Thindril was once a woman of luxury that spent her day shopping, attending to tea-parties and dinners, babbling about the latest gossip, walking around the gardens and looking pretty. Needless to say that it didn't take her long to get tired of all that but back in day Thindril would never imagine that she would end up as a Dark Brotherhood assassin. Her clothes and jewelry were lost in Kvatch, her friends would now bore her to death and gossip didn't interest her no more. However, the elf still enjoyed gardens and using her looks to get what she wanted. Being a Dunmer allowed her to remain young for longer than men, even though her body was now scarred thanks to what happened in Kvatch. The elf was very sensitive about it, especially because she was used to be flawless and now had three large scratch scars that crossed her stomach from one side to the other.

She brushed those thoughts aside and left the Imperial City behind her. Thindril arrived in Cheydinhal in the afternoon and quickly sneaked to the Sanctuary, feeling relieved for being finally home.

The Sanctuary's darkness was a welcome sight and the Dunmer soon found Vicente reading in the common room, she walked to him with a grin on her face.

"I already know about your latest success. Actually, all Cyrodiil knows about the terrible accident that killed Baelin." He said while looking up and closing the book. "Have a sit." Vicente invited with a smile.

"Good. I am truly glad that they think of it as an accident." Thindril replied while sitting next to him.

"You should be, sister. This is your payment." Vicente said while handing her a purse full of coins. "And your bonus." He smiled while handing her a dagger. "It's Sufferthorn, one of our most deadly daggers."

"Thank you." Thindril nodded while examining her new dagger. It was bigger than the Blade of Woe, sharper as well, but it did not seem to be as magical nor beautiful as her first blade that was given by Lucien.

"There is something else..." Vicente said.

"Yes, brother?" Thindril gazed to the vampire again.

"You are not a Murderer anymore. You have now advanced to the rank of Slayer. Congratulations, sister. You have performed admirably." Vicente grinned and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Mainly thanks to you, Vicente." Thindril smiled. "You have been really patient with me and I appreciate that."

"It's my job, sister. Besides you are not giving me a hard trouble." He paused. "Yet…" Vicente then joked with a small chuckle.

"Just wait for the Alchemy class. You know I can't cook." Thindril confessed.

"Really?" He wrinkled his eyebrow.

"Yes, why?" She chuckled at his reaction.

"You have been married for five times, I thought that… You know." Vicente stammered a bit for he probably didn't want to sound like a macho man.

"You know, only my first husband couldn't afford servants and he liked to cook so…" Thindril shrugged. "I can cook very simple things, but that's it."

"Were you wealthy? You didn't look like a high class citizen when you came here thanks to your poor health but now… I can imagine you as a high-class citizen." Vicente asked, it was the first time that he asked anything more personal about Thindril. She also noticed that she barely knew anything at all about her trainer and felt slightly guilty about her lack of curiosity.

"I was, in fact… It was lovely at first. The silks, the food, the parties, the scandals… It was all quite fun, but too repetitive, you know?" Thindril sighed. "And then I had to murder my husbands out of boredom." She joked, even though it wasn't completely false. "What about you, Vicente? Were you married? Did you have kids?"

"No, I was too young to settle down." He replied. "Besides, I was an adventurer. All I ever wanted was to travel and see the world until one day a vampire bit me in an expedition to Morrowind." Vicente paused. "It was too late when I found out that I was infected."

"You didn't want to become a vampire?" She asked, hoping that it wasn't too personal.

"I had no kin." Vicente shrugged. "I was shunned from society and all my friends suddenly left me, I won't lie to you. The first century was quite hard." He explained before smiling. "But then I was recruited by the Dark Brotherhood and everything changed. I do enjoy being a vampire now and I do not wish to be human again."

"The first century?" Thindril quirked her eyebrow. "How long have you been a vampire?" She had noticed that Vicente was an old vampire, yes, but Thindril was only in her fifties. Living alone for a century seemed to be plain torture for her.

"I am three hundred and twenty years old." Vicente answered. "I've been a vampire for exactly three hundred years and I haven't seen the sunlight for over two centuries."

"By Sithis! I feel like a child now." She chuckled.

"If you forgive my curiosity, how old are you, Thindril? I know that elves don't age as fast as men and you look rather young." He noted.

"Well, thanks." She nodded with a smile. It was always good to hear that, especially when you just got terrible scars on your body. "I am fifty-five years old. I am at my prime now." Thindril answered. "I don't know about my parents, but my ancestors lived until there a hundred and fifty to two hundred years old, so I guess I still have much to live." She shrugged. "This is… if I don't get killed first."

"Oh, so you have a family?" The vampire asked, surprised.

"Yes, but… We don't get along, you see…" Thindril explained.

"I see, it's just most of us don't have any family and if some do, they often have broken relationships with their relatives. I think Ocheeva and Teinaava are the only exception in this Sanctuary." Vicente chuckled. "Actually, sister… I wonder if you could help me with something more… personal."

"Of course, Vicente." Thindril nodded. Vicente was her closest friend in the Sanctuary and the person she spent more time with. Doing him a favor would cost her nothing.

"An old friend of mine is back to Cyrodiil and she wants me to join her kin. The thing is, I have no wish to join her and she… she…" Vicente stammered. "I am being blackmailed, Thindril, and I can't kill them because if other vampires investigate their deaths, they will know I did it." Vicente sighed. "Let's say that they already know my style… if you do it, they will think of you as a mere vampire hunter." He whispered.

"But who do you want me to kill, exactly?" The elf asked, slightly confused.

"Sabrina Valerius, and her group if possible. She is the leader of a vampire kin that has recently made Bloodcrust Cavern their home." Vicente explained, still in a low tone. "It's near Skingard. Do you know where it is?"

Thindril shook her head. "How many are them?"

"Not many yet, but don't worry, I don't think you will be facing them alone. There is someone else who is also being blackmailed as well – the Count himself." Vicente confessed.

"The count?" She raised her eyebrows.

"Yes, did you even wonder why he never attends to public events? And why his lifespan is strangely long?" Vicente smirked. "Every evidence point to vampirism, yet common people are so easily deceived." He shrugged. "Anyway, I heard that someone from the Mages Guild will be coming too, so you won't be facing the whole kin all by yourself."

"I will kill her, brother." She nodded. "You soon won't need to worry about her anymore."

"Thank you so much, dearest sister." Vicente smiled. "I wouldn't trust this with anything else." He said while getting up. "Now are you read for your alchemy lesson?"

Thindril grinned while getting up as well. "Surely, dear brother."

-T-

_Mother, mother, sweet mother, I have such exciting news for you._

_I've been chasing lizards. Chasing them, shooting them, poisoning them. They smell mother, they do, they make this 'family' even uglier with their greasy scales and twisted horns._

_can't keep doing this much longer, mommy. they disguise me as a clown while I make them drown. they don't know for they don't see._

_Drown drown drown drown! Hahahahaha._

_drown the ugly lizard and her loyalties in her own blood and leave her body to rot in the mud._


	10. Strictly Business

It had been a long day and Lucien was now about to go to sleep. He had gone to Anvil to meet one of the members of the Black Hand, Mathieu Bellamont, he bored Lucien with administrative matters before finally letting him go. Since it was too late to return to Fort Farragut and Lucien was too tired, he decided to sleep in local inn.

He took off his black robes, laying on the soft bed completely naked. The touch of the smooth sheets against his warm skin felt very good. If only he had the right company, he would be able to fully relax.

Lucien could always take care of it alone, but it wouldn't be the same thing. His hardening shaft responded to his thoughts, making Lucien take a hold of it. His will of seeing her grew bigger and so did his member. He started stroking himself, rubbing his head with his thumb. His thoughts roamed around the elf riding him, her soft skin and the noises that came out of her mouth. Lucien gasped at the waves of pleasure that invaded his body, he shut his eyes, enjoying every moment of it as he was about to climax. Lucien wanted her now and the fact that he couldn't have her made his release slightly frustrating, he stroked himself harder until the last drops came out, breathing hard and feeling his heart pump in his chest.

It had been a quick and easy way to calm his urges for now. He hoped at least that his hunger would not be so demanding. His breath calmed down and so did his frustration. Lucien cleaned himself, making sure that he hadn't stained the anything. It took him seconds to lay on his stomach and fall asleep.

-T-

Skingard was a fine city, warmer than Bruma at least.

Thindril was sitting on bench in the castle, waiting for Count Hassildor. The Mages Guild person hadn't arrived yet and the guards gave her a suspicious look thanks to her shrouded armor. Thindril didn't like it, she wasn't used to be treated like a criminal, but she would live.

It didn't take long for an Altmer to arrive to the castle a well. Like all Altmers, he was very tall and slender, but his long blonde hair that reached the middle of his back distinguished him from the others.

"Are you from the Mages Guild?" Thindril asked behind him, making him jump.

"By the Divines! Don't sneak on me like that!" He gasped. Thindril just chuckled. "Are you?" She asked again.

"Who wants to know?" He asked in a defensive tone.

"Whatever. By that tone and those sparkly blue robes I know that you belong to the guild." Thindril replied. "We are going to work together, Altmer." She told him.

The Altmer sneered and was about to reply to her but Count Hassildor finally came down.

"There you are." He nodded. "I am Janus Hassildor, Count Skingard." The vampire turned to Thindril. "This young mer here is Anaril and you are Thindril, I suppose?"

"Indeed, nice to meet you both." Thindril nodded and smiled. The Altmer quirked an eyebrow to her. "Oh, I see now. But what does have to do with the information?" He asked the count.

"Let's start, shall we? There isn't much time." Janus Hassildor started while walking them to one of the side-rooms that would give them more privacy. "Thindril here already knows the details, but you don't Anaril. There is something I'd like you to do before I give you the information I promised."

"What?" He blinked.

"There's a vampire nest in the city, I want you to go with Thindril and take care of them. I shall not tolerate anyone that threats my true identity." The count uttered. "There is also something else, and I believe you still don't know this, Thindril."

She blinked to the count, wondering what it could be. Vicente wouldn't hide important information from her, she was sure of that.

"These vampires attracted vampire hunters. Those hunters have to leave; I don't care how you do it. Just make them disappear." Hassildor ordered.

"Oh, I can do that." Thindril smirked.

Anaril raised his eyebrows to her. "Wait… are you… are you an assassin?"

"Right now, we are allies. That's the only thing that matters, Anaril." She answered him. "However, I would appreciate your discretion about my name and my role here."

"I can assure you that you can trust this young mer, Thindril." The Count nodded.

"Yes." He nodded. "Forgive me, I am not used to meet people like you… No offense, of course." Anaril stammered, really trying to sound as polite as he could.

"None taken, dear." Thindril shrugged. "Now, shall we get going?"

"Good luck you two. And Thindril, send my regards to your brother." The Count nodded.

"Surely." She nodded back. "We will not disappoint you, Count Hassildor." The elf reassured him before leaving the castle with Anaril. Both mer headed southeast to the cavern, Thindril allowed herself to contemplate the scenario while heading to their preys' lair.

"So, uh… are you really a murderer?" Anaril asked. He was far too curious for his own good.

"Being young doesn't allow you to be naïve, Anaril." Thindril sighed. "Keep your questions to yourself and we will get along just fine."

"I'm sorry, I am just trying to make a conversation here." He shrugged.

"Let's talk about you then, your life seems to be much more morally decent than mine." Thindril replied. "How long have you been a member of the Mages Guild?"

"Two months. Haven't been busier in my whole life." Anaril answered. "But it's been quite rewarding."

"Oh, I was with a mage once. He taught me a lot." Thindril told him. "Magic is great as long as you don't lose yourself in it."

"Like Necromancers do." Anaril frowned.

"Yes, like Necromancers do." Thindril nodded in agreement. They soon reached the Bloodcrust Cavern and decided to take a sneaky approach to their killing for they were outnumbered. Inside the wet and dark cavern both elves took the vampires one by one. Thindril quickly realized who Sabrina was by her determined gaze and her fine clothes, she made a sign for Anaril to stay back and cover her. This one the Dunmer wanted to handle personally.

"Sabrina Valerius." She drawled and watched the vampire turn her red gaze to her.

"And who are you?" Sabrina asked, her voice was surprisingly sharp.

"Thindril." The elf noted as she came closer. "I believe you and I share a mutual friend."

"By your dark armor, I assume it is Vicente." Sabrina noted. "How is he?"

"Well, he will be better when you're dead though." Thindril replied, unsheathing Sufferthorn.

"Allow me a few words before you kill me. I suppose you have already taken care of the rest of my kin? Doesn't matter, they were incompetents by letting you go so far." She sighed.

"I am all ears, Sabrina." The elf replied, holding tight the hilt of her weapon.

"Vicente might look like a charming vampire, hell, he is probably still quite manipulative to convince you to go down here just to kill me." She chuckled. "But he is not all that he seems. The Dark Brotherhood is just a nice mask of his true self."

"I took you for an intelligent person." Thindril raised her eyebrow. "The Dark Brotherhood wasn't made for knights and nobody really cares if Vicente is one or not."

"That's not the point, Thindril. You will see it sooner or later." She smirked, showing her fangs.

"Enough talking." Thindril growled impatiently. She noticed that Sabrina was just bluffing and was probably trying to talk her way out of this. "If what you wanted to say was truly important, you would had already said it." The Dunmer spat while craving her dagger in Sabrina's heart. Its enchantment allowed the vampire to die quickly, but Sabrina still had time to let out a horrible scream and bite Thindril's shoulder before dying. The elf cried in pain, falling on her knees next to Sabrina's ashes.

"By the Nine, Thindril! You're a fool!" Anaril jumped out of his hiding spot and helped her getting up. The Dunmer was trembling with pain and the shock. "Can you just make the pain disappear for now and stop insulting me? We still have the hunters to kill." Thindril groaned while getting up.

"Do we really have to kill them? Can't we just talk to them?" Anaril asked while casting some healing spells. "You need to go to a temple now or you're going to end up a vampire, silly!"

"By Sithis, are you always like that?" Thindril sighed while getting up and holding her bleeding arm. "Let's get out of here now."

Both elves went to Skingard, it was hard to stay unnoticed when Thindril was bleeding badly but Anaril knew shortcuts to the local temple so that kept them safe from most curious eyes. The local healer took care of Thindril who also received Julianos' blessing, it was not needed but Marie Palielle, the healer, insisted. Thindril wondered how her dread father would feel about his children receiving other gods' blessings. But again, she couldn't openly say that she worshiped Sithis, after all.

The Hunters were also taken care of. One by one they died by Thindril's hands. Anaril said that he wanted to stay out of this and she understood him perfectly for a few months ago she would also back off of such doing. The sunset came and the last hunter finally gave his last breath. It was now time to go home.

-T-

"How long has she been missing?"

"Four days now, Lucien." Teinaava answered. "You know Ocheeva, she wouldn't fail that contract. The guy was living in the middle of the woods in a tent and he was no match to her."

"Maybe she was killed by an animal or creature…" Vicente sighed.

"Doubt it." Lucien wrinkled his nose. "She is not brainless to face what she can't win. I have already sent Telaendril and Antoinette to the contract's location to check if Ocheeva killed him or not and to see if there is any evidence that might tell us what happened to her."

"Good. We can't also fail our client. A bad reputation is the last thing we need." Vicente agreed.

"And where is Thindril?" Lucien asked.

"She is in Skingard doing me a favor right now." The vampire replied. "Should be here soon."

"She has just arrived, actually." Teinaava said, pointing to the door.

Thindril's eyes first lingered on Lucien's before gazing at her other two brothers. The environment was heavy and she soon noticed that something was wrong.

"What happened?" The elf asked.

"Ocheeva is missing and we do not think she was killed in a contract." Lucien answered. The Dunmer's red eyes grew big before frowning. "By Sithis, how long has she been…"

"Four days." Teinaava answered the elf.

Thindril looked clearly disturbed now, she gazed to Vicente who was also looking at her strangely. The Dunmer felt slightly lost.

"Sister, allow me to speak to you in private." Lucien said while grabbing her good arm gently and walking her to the training room. Thindril felt Vicente's gaze on her but didn't look back.

"What favor did you do for Vicente?" Lucien asked once they were alone.

"I had to kill a vampire kin… why?" She asked, really confused now.

"You should have told me first!" He spat.

"But I don't even know how to reach you!" Thindril protested. The Speaker had forgotten by a few moments that she was still just a Slayer, that Thindril didn't know where he lived or how to contact him. He simply had too much in his mind – Ocheeva missing, the Purification matter, the traitor that they simply couldn't find, not to mention his normal affairs that normally give him enough trouble.

"Right, right. You do not." He sighed before putting his hands on her shoulders. "You do not look alright, my dear."

"I was bitten by a vampire…" She said while grabbing her arm gently. "I am fine now and I am not infected, it just hurts."

"I wish I could find a way to protect you from any major danger." Lucien whispered while holding her chin. "Especially the danger we are facing now – the real danger."

"What is threatening us?" Thindril whispered back to him.

"There is a traitor among us, Thindril." He confessed. "Look at me, promise me this." Lucien paused. "You will always take care of yourself, especially when you are returning home. That is usually when he chooses to attack."

"A traitor? By Sithis…" Thindril frowned while shaking her head. She now understood what all that in the common room was about. "I will, if you promise to do the same." She cupped his cheek.

"Do not worry about me. I will be fine and we all are going to get through this." Lucien whispered to her while holding her tightly in his arms. She leaned to him and kissed his lips gently, feeling his warmth and his addicting scent. Thindril had no idea what he did to her, she just knew that she had never met a man like him before. "I cannot take my mind off you." He finally confessed, making her sit on a table. "Tell me you feel the same way." Lucien breathed while kissing her neck. Thindril craned it and closed her eyes, allowing him to go further. "Tell me, Thindril. Tell me you are mine. Tell me you will never deny me."

She opened her red eyes and gazed to him. Thindril hesitated saying those words at first only because she had never said them before, well, she actually did say some sweet things to her husbands but she was usually lying. Lucien was different. She knew she wanted to be only his and it scared her. "I can't stop thinking about you." She finally confessed in a soft whisper. "I am yours, I will never deny you." Their lips met in a fiery kiss and the elf's legs wrapped around Lucien's waist. She cupped his cheek, tracing his jaw as his hands went to her thighs, wanting to feel her skin under the armor.

"No here… Someone might walk in…" Thindril breathed between their kisses. Lucien forced himself to stop, he was actually irritated that she reminded him of where he was and all the problems and weights that he had to bear.

"You are right." He swallowed. "We will be together again, soon." Lucien whispered, first kissing her forehead and then her lips. "And do me a favor – live."

"I will try if you do." She smiled slightly and watched him leave, feeling a sudden emptiness when he was gone.


	11. No Rest For The Wicked

"She's dead." Thindril said while changing her bandages. "All of them are dead. There is no need for you to worry."

"How many vampires were there?" Vicente asked.

"Five? Six? I can't remember very well." The elf replied.

Vicente sighed in relief. "Thank you so much, Thindril. You lifted a burden from my shoulders. I will not forget it." He paused before walking to her. "Let me take a close look to that."

"You knew I was bitten before I told you, right?" She asked. "I could see by the look you were giving me."

Vicente hesitated answering at first before nodding. "Yes, I could… smell it. It was Sabrina who did it."

"By Sithis… You even know who bit me. Aren't you dangerous?" Thindril smiled. "She said… things…"

"What things?" Vicente quirked his eyebrow.

"Not much, she was being very vague." Thindril explained. "She basically said that I couldn't trust you." The elf paused while carefully tying the bandages around her arm. "I did not believe her, as you can imagine."

"Oh, but she had reasons to tell you that." Vicente sighed.

"Vicente, you don't need to tell me anything." Thindril told him. "I think that I understand you above all people, right? My husbands didn't have a happy end as well." She smiled.

"I suppose." Vicente gave a small chuckle. "Now get that arm healed, yes?"

"Surely." She nodded. "Vicente… what happened to Ocheeva…"

"Don't think about it, sister." The vampire interrupted. "The Black Hand is dealing with it, there isn't much we can do now."

"But why didn't you tell me about the traitor before?"

"Because that's not a very good thing to say to someone whom has just arrived in our family." Vicente explained. "I am sorry for not telling you, you did deserve to know, but orders are orders… it would also be a matter of time before you discovered."

"Hmm, yes, I guess." Thindril shrugged. "But isn't there anything I can do to help you?"

"No, Thindril. All you can do now is rest. The vampire poison is very strong." Vicente said. "And you will have a very big contract ready for you when you're recovered." He confessed.

"Oh! What kind of contract?" Thindril asked curiously.

"Rest!" Vicente ordered. "You will know soon, Thindril." He smiled before leaving her in the sleeping quarters. Thindril laid down on her bed and sighed. She hated to wait and she hated when people didn't tell her what she wanted to know. If Vicente thought that to peak her curiosity would allow her to rest more peacefully, he was very wrong.

The Dunmer returned to the book she was reading, _The Brothers of Darkness_. She found herself to be quite ignorant about the Dark Brotherhood's story and felt the need to change that. Also, the fact that most of the events took place in Morrowind made Thindril feel even more attached to her family. She devoured the book, reading it until she felt exhausted. Only then Thindril put it down on the nightstand next to her and close her eyes.

The elf was almost falling asleep when she heard noises in the corridor. Thindril quickly recognized Telaendril and Antoinette's voices as they walked to their beds, the Dunmer remained in the same position and pretended to be in a deep sleep.

"She was not there, sister." Telaendril said. "I cannot help but to think that she is hurt and hiding somewhere." The Bosmer sighed.

"I think that Lucien will be displeased with the fact that we haven't found any evidence. The only thing we know is that the contract was fulfilled." Antoinette said. "There wasn't even Argonian blood in the sight. I really think she was attacked by this… traitor."

"By Sithis… this is getting out of control." Telaendril whispered more to herself. "The next target could be anyone."

"I hope it's the stinky Dunmer here." Antoinette whispered with a note of hatred. Thindril clenched her teeth and to control herself to not jump on Antoinette and do something that she would later regret.

"Antoinette Marie!" The Bosmer warned. "She is your sister! And she hasn't done anything to you!"

"She was rude to me!" Antoinette protested. "And… and…" The Breton stammered.

"Yes, and?" The Bosmer asked with an impatient tone in her voice that Thindril had never heard before.

"And Lucien has been acting weird since she arrived." Antoinette confessed, Thindril noted a hint of insecurity in her voice, making her want to smirk.

"We all warned you about Lucien, sister." Telaendril said. "With all due respect to our leader, he uses women to satisfy his most basic needs and then throws them away in the next day. It would be a matter of time…"

"I'd rather be dead! Dead!" Antoinette spat. "I'd rather be dead than see Lucien with his Ashborn!"

"Antoinette!" Telaendril gasped in surprise. "Shut your mouth immediately! This Ashborn, as you call, already is in the same rank as you and I am your superior. I demand you to stop saying such foul things!"

"If it was with Grogon, what would you do?" Antoinette argued.

"Don't even try to do that…"

"You wouldn't like it, right?" Antoinette sighed. "You do not understand, sister, that all I ever wanted was to be special for someone…"

"You are special to us, Antoinette, you are our little sister…" Telaendril explained.

"No, not in that way," The Breton interrupted. "I want to be special for Lucien. He saved me, I own him everything and I know I can make him much happier than any newcomer."

"Right, Antoinette. I think you should calm yourself down." The Bosmer sighed. "I am going to get some sleep, and you should rest too for you are too tired. Good night."

It took a while for Antoinette to actually slid inside her sheets, once that happened, the sleeping quarters were suddenly quiet. Antoinette managed to irritate Thindril in a way that no one had ever done to her before, but after hearing how she truly felt, Thindril felt a mix of hatred, anger and sorrow. She did want to end her miserable life, not only out of hatred but also because everyone knew that Antoinette wasn't that useful to anyone, not even to herself. Thindril wondered what Sithis had seen in her and if he truly whispered to her when she killed someone.

Wasn't the Listener the only one who was supposed to hear voices? Thindril felt outraged.

And slightly jealous as well, even though she would never admit it.

Seriously, why would Sithis speak to that… thing.

-T-

"I am now completely sure that Teinnava _is not_ the traitor. He would never hurt his sister."

"Yes, but what if Ocheeva is and made this up? What is this is a part of a bigger plan? And what if, brother, Teinaava and Ocheeva are both together in this?"

"I do not think that is what is happening, Mathieu."

"Why?"

"What reasons would they have to betray us?"

"I could ask you the same reason about you, me and all the others, Lucien. I think that reason is well hidden and that is why we must suspect from everyone. Even the newcomer."

"Mathieu, please use your reason. She only knew about this yesterday."

"Yes, but you do not know if that is what she wanted you to think, Lucien."

"I think you are being a senseless paranoid, that is what I think".

-T-

To Thindril's surprise, Vicente was gone in the next morning. He had left her a note in his room with her name written on the envelope. Fortunately, she found the letter untouched. Thindril was starting to grow suspicious of the people around her, not only because Antoinette but also because this entire traitor talk.

And Ocheeva was still missing.

She unfolded the paper and started to read. There was a contract to be done in the Imperial City that involved her sneaking into the sewers in order to get into a secret passage that leaded to the Imperial Prison. The target was a Dunmer named Valen Dreth, who was stuck in his cell. Thindril should not be spotted by any guards and she should not kill them either, or else the bonus would be forfeit. It was a challenge, but the elf wasn't very nervous about it for now but Thindril knew that everything would change once she found herself in the sewers. She had always been good at sneaking around, yes, but this sounded a complete and utter madness.

It had to be done, though. Vicente had high hopes for her.

Perhaps too high.

She left his quarters, holding his letter in her hand and found Grogon and Teinaava in the common room.

"Greetings, brothers. Mind if I join you?" Thindril asked.

"Surely not, take a seat, dear sister." Grogon answered warmly.

Thindril sat with them, she took a brief look at their expressions. Grogon looked quite serious, which was unusual. He was also awfully quiet. Thindril had not heard his roaring laugh echoing the Sanctuary for two days now and Teinaava's eyes looked lifeless.

"Teinaava and I were discussing that Telaendril and Antoinette haven't found no signs of Ocheeva." Grogon muttered.

"This… traitor… how long has he been around?" Thindril asked.

"There had been reports of strange deaths for a year and half now. Some were killed after performing a contract, others inside the Sanctuary. After a while, we knew how to distinguish the common bandit strike from the traitor's…" Teinaava sighed. "He rarely killed anyone on their way to fulfill a contract, which is… strange. It's like he wants to us to keep going and to take us down at the same time." The Argonian said more to himself. Thindril frowned. "Is that a letter?" He turned to her.

"A contract, actually." Thindril replied.

"Who is your new prey?" Grogon asked while filling his cup with mead.

"Valen Dreth, Imperial Prison."

Grogon and Teinaava exchanged looks and the silence grew heavy. "Imperial Prison, eh?" The Orc sneered. "Infiltrating such place is no small matter. Those guards are heavily armed and professionally trained. If discovered, don't be a fool. Flee!"

"Also…" Teinaava added. "Watch for the creatures that lurk in sewers." He warned.

"What creatures?" Thindril wrinkled her nose.

"Rats, goblins, mudcrabs… They are not very dangerous, but can ruin your day if you are not careful." He explained.

"Right…" She sighed. "Thank you for your advice."

"And don't die on us, not now." Grogon said.

"I'll try." Thindril gave a faint smile. "What about your contracts?"

"Haven't had anything for a week now." Grogon shrugged.

"I had to kill a Dunmer three days ago, sister. He kind of looked like you." Teinaava remarked.

"Did he?" She shrugged. "I think we Dunmers usually look alike for the other races, we spent so much time with our own after all."

"True, but this one had red hair." He noted.

"Oh, I find Dunmer redheads more exotic." Thindril replied. "And I am not saying this because I am a Dunmer or a redhead. I think the contrast gives us a dramatic look." She noted in a desperate way to lighten his mood.

"Aren't you a proud little elf?" The Argonian smiled slightly.

"It comes with the race." She chuckled. "Now, if you forgive me, Valen Dreth needs to be dead soon." Thindril said while getting up.

"May Sithis be with you, sister." Grogon said.

"Yes, good luck to you." Teinaava nodded. Thindril took her leave by heading out to the city. It was a matter of minutes before she found herself walking on the road. Thindril tied her long red hair up before putting her hood on, she welcome the sight of a clear sky and good weather. Thindril hated traveling with rain, it slowed her down and brought her memories of a certain trip to the inn of Ill Omen…

The trip itself wasn't bad, but…

_But…_

The road to the Imperial city was short and fast, it took her half a day and fortunately there were no accidents. The north sewers could be seen from the shore where she was standing, the elf would have to swim which could be slightly dangerous thanks to the Slaughterfish, but it would be better and quicker than look for a bridge.

She swam in Rumare's waters, gladly, they weren't so filthy in this side of the lake and the leather would make Thindril's body dry at a normal rate. She soon found herself near the sewers, the stench that came from them was horrid making Thindril use her hood to cover her nose. She lockpicked her way in and followed the map that came with the instructions that was supposed to guide her in her way to the prison. The elf kept an eye for mudcrabs, rats and goblins like Teinaava warned, but those creatures couldn't really sneak on her for their smell was too strong.

Thindril soon found herself outside of the sewers and inside in some kind of ayleid-slash-imperial ruin. She heard someone talk and froze, ready to turn back if anyone tried to venture in the little and dark corridor where the elf was.

"Of course I am proud to do my duty…" A male voice said. "But… it's a waste of time. What are we guarding? Cold stone and shadow, that's it." He muttered. Thindril thought that he had a point, their presence there only complicated her job.

"I'm not disagreeing with you. Believe me." Another voice replied. "Those assassins got what they wanted. The Emperor is dead. They've got to reason to come back."

"That's exactly what I'm saying! But the captain will listen, noooo! _'We must have a presence! The prison must remain secure!'_" He quoted with a tone of mockery in his voice.

She moved a little closer, the sound of her breath seemed like an orchestra to her ears soon to be heard by the guards.

"Yeah, what a laugh, huh?" The other chuckled. "Just who are we keeping secure? Dreth?" He snorted. "Since the other got away, he's the only one rotting down here."

Thindril had heard rumors of a woman who had fled the prison in the same day the emperor was murdered and later closed the gate of Kvatch, everyone in Cyrodiil had heard about her, but the elf didn't know much more. Not even her name or where she was from, maybe she was spending too much time locked in the Sanctuary.

"Yeah, well, I guess you can't blame Captain Montrose too much. This is his big career move, after all. Got to impress that lost upstairs…" One commented.

"Yeah, true enough. Ah, well, I best be getting back to my watch. Hey don't forget, we're meeting for drinks latter at the Bloated Float."

_Finally_, the elf thought.

"Oh, I will be there!" The other voice laughed. "How could I miss a chance to see you cover before that big Orc bouncer?"

_By Sithis, shut up already._

"Pfft, I ain't afraid of no one. Courage is my middle name… oh, nevermind!"

And there was finally silence, Thindril saw one of the guards heading towards the door in front of her. The shadows kept her from being seen, so she risked peeking to the room where the two men were talking.

It was clear.

She walked through the door in front of her, following one of the guards, but always remaining in the shadows. Thindril ignored her heart's loud beat and just remembered Vicente's words during her first training. _Let darkness absorb you and you will become darkness itself._

The elf soon stopped following the guard and walked through another door, as it said in the map. Thindril kept sneaking in the shadows, only to be startled by a light in the corridors which was actually a torch. She cursed in her mind, getting out of the light's way and staying in the darkest corner of the ruins. The guard soon walked by, he didn't seem to notice that she was there. Good.

Thindril got out of there, walking only with the tip of her feet. She saw stairs and climbed them up, then a door, then more stairs. Thindril was close. She knew it.

A dark hole, darker than the dungeons, leaded to a cold and wet cell. It had chains nailed to the ceiling and no bed. She cringed. Another voice was heard, a man and a mer were talking, she recognized Valen's right away for she had too the same accent from Morrowind. Thindril smirked and waited for the Guard to walk away.

Thindril came out of her hole. She made her way to Valen's cell, it didn't take him long for him to notice her.

"I must surely be dead, and in the halls of Azura to look upon such a vision. You are so beautiful, my dear Dunmer maiden..." He whispered.

"What the hell…" She chuckled, not believing that her prey was actually saying those things to her.

"Do you want to stay in my cell? One of the guards owes me a favor, you know…" Valen said as he came closer.

"I want you… to come to me. Come to me and I release you." She lied convincingly in a slow tone.

"Yes, yes, my lady, whatever you wa… Argh!"

She pierced his lungs with her dagger, smiling at him. "Go now to the Void, idiot." She drawled and let the Dunmer bleed to death.


	12. The Cursed Breton

**So this chapter is short, but sweet. I've been busy with college. Sorry all. I would really like to thank you for reviewing and favoriting! As a last note, Thindril will be bitchier than usual because I felt that she was being too nice for too long, so enjoy!**

"Sister!" Antoinette squealed as soon as she saw Thindril.

"What?" Thindril replied with an annoyed tone. She was tired and had little patience for arguments.

"Ocheeva was found! Alive!" Antoinette said in an exaggerated tone.

Thindril stared at the Breton briefly before running to Ocheeva's quarters without replying to her. She found Lucien outside and alone.

"Lucien…" she called while walking to him. The Speaker turned to her, his look softened slightly, but he made no move to touch her. Antoinette and other members of the Sanctuary should be around and they had to be discreet after all.

"Yes, sister." He replied.

"How is Ocheeva?"

"She is badly wounded, but she will live. Teinaava is inside with her." Lucien answered. "You just came back from that contract in the Imperial Prison?"

Thindril nodded shortly.

"How did it go?"

"Well, no one saw me." She answered with a small smile.

"Good, you are quite an asset to our Sanctuary." Lucien smiled back before pulling her closer. "Antoinette will soon leave. Wait for me in your quarters, we will talk later." He whispered. Thindril nodded to him before running to her bed. She found Antoinette changing to her armor and getting ready to leave. An awkward silence invaded the room, but Thindril had no wish to break it. The only way to keep her sanity intact was ignoring Antoinette

"Don't you wish me luck, sister?" Antoinette asked.

"Good luck." The elf replied dryly.

"It sounds like you are wishing me to die instead." The Breton replied.

_And I am._

"I am tired." Thindril explained. "I just broke in the Imperial prison without being seen or heard, do you know that no one was able to do that for over a hundred years?" She boasted.

"Yes, I also hear that the Imperial Watch wasn't what it used to be. Too bad they didn't catch you, I just wanted them to do to you what they did to me…" Antoinette smirked while picturing Thindril being raped and beaten by the guards. Thindril clenched her teeth and tried to remain calm.

"What did they do to you, sister?" The elf asked sweetly.

"Oh, you know what… You obviously don't know the true definition of horror, or else you wouldn't be asking." Antoinette replied.

"Say it." Thindril insisted. "I do want to do what they did to you. You know… every detail."

"No, you know perfectly what I am talking about!" The Breton hissed.

"I'm not. Tell me, what did they do? Are you such a coward that you can't even say it?"

"Shut up!" The Breton yelled.

"How many were them? Two? Three?... Six? I bet your holes are as large as the sewers' tunnels by now…" The elf smirked evilly. Antoinette's face was red with anger, her eyes glistening with anger. "Did they leave you reeking with their cum?"

Antoinette jumped on Thindril with an animal ferocity. The Breton started to pull her red hair out and hit her head against the wood on the side of her bed, Thindril shrieked before scratching Antoinette's face as hard as she could, making her bleed. Antoinette punched her in response, making Thindril feel dizzy. The elf grabbed the Breton by her hair and made them turn around, she slapped Antoinette as hard as she could over and over again, making her face redder than a tomato and leaving her a mark. Antoinette squealed and squirmed in pain. With half of her blonde hair being ripped by her hand and the other one slapping and scratching her already bloody face, Antoinette became a very nasty sight to see.

"Thindril!" A voice roared before she felt a big hand push her. The Dunmer fell on the floor after hitting her head on her nightstand, the hit made her bleed and also slightly dizzy.

"Antoinette, are you alright?" The elf now recognized the voice. It was Lucien who had pushed her.

"Bitch… fucking bitch…" Antoinette gasped with her weak voice. Thindril was soon dragged by her arm to the bathroom by her Speaker, he closed the door behind them and made her lie on the floor.

"What was on your mind?" Lucien asked, his tone was harsh and uncaring. The elf shuddered.

"Answer me!" He roared. "What were you thinking?"

Thindril shuddered again before answering. "I wasn't thinking, that's the problem…"

"You stupid elf…" He breathed while walking aimlessly around the bathroom.

"She attacked me first…" Thindril muttered.

"Can't you see? It does matter who started it!" He roared again. "And now? What will you do now?"

Thindril felt small, yet she tried not to look frightened by his wrath. "Now… Now I will face my punishment, whatever that may be." She said in a dry tone, trying to hold back the tears.

"I have punished Dark Brotherhood brothers and sisters for less!"

"I know. You lost your respect for me, punish me as well, if you want to."

"Do _not_ give me orders, do _not_ tell me what I think about you." His tone was dangerously slow.

"I wasn't giving you orders…"

"Do _not_ answer back!" He roared again, breathing hard. "Stay here, if you leave this bathroom I swear by Sithis that I will kill you."

Lucien left the room, Thindril hugged her knees, she was shaking and she wanted to cry and break everything in that bathroom, yet what good would that do? Also, she was slightly petrified by everything that had just happened. Lucien seemed to take ages to return which gave her time to recompose herself a little. Once the Speaker was back, she noticed that he now looked relatively calm. "I healed Antoinette of the little harm you did and casted a memory spell. She will not remember this unnecessary incident." He told her while sitting on the edge of the tub. "Get up."

Thindril untied her now messy hair and got up, facing him.

"You will never do this again." He ordered, the darkness that filled the room wasn't strong enough to hide the danger flickering in his dark eyes.

"Never again." She swallowed and felt slightly ashamed.

"Good." He nodded, cupping her cheek and forcing her to look at him. "Your eye… Did she punch you?" Thindril nodded. Lucien suddenly wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. "I do trust you to believe that these situations will not succeed again." He uttered.

"At first… I thought you were going to kill me…" She confessed.

"No, you belong to me, Thindril. I meant that when I said it." Lucien answered, he spoke of her like she was some sort of possession and Thindril kind of liked it. "Let me see if you're bruised anywhere else." His hands started to take off her shrouded armor, Thindril stood there without moving, letting him do what he wanted with her. His other hand started to fill the bathtub with water, Thindril slipped inside once she was naked and watched him take his dark clothes off.

Lucien slipped in the tub with her, kissing her hard and pulling her to him. "What if Antoinette walks in?" The elf breathed. "She is gone." He replied. "And the others?" Thindril breathed again, shivering at his kisses on her neck. "Gone as well, except Ocheeva, of course." Their lips devoured each other, yet the elf was always worried about being caught by the other members in the Brotherhood. Thindril had always been too careful when it came to hiding their affair – she never mentioned to anyone, Vicente included, she always tried to get his smell out of her, she always avoiding looking too much at him in public and many other small things she purposely did that were slowly becoming part of her being.

His hands lift her body gently, making her straddle him. She felt his hardening member rubbing against her slit, making her gasp gently. Thindril grabbed the soap and started rubbing it against his strong chest, the Dunmer always liked some bubbles in her bath. Lucien's strong and big hands were on her hips and thighs, pressing her down to him and making his need to of being in her getting stronger by the second. Then, his fingers went to her soft breasts and started grasping them and squeezing them. Thindril smirked in return before making the tip if his member to rub in her entrance, she watched a short groan come out of his mouth before asking him to do something that left him surprised.

"Sit on the edge of the tub." She whispered.

He did as she asked, making her see how big his shaft was. Thindril bit her lip and smiled mischievously before licking his head, Lucien shuddered a bit, but had no particular reaction, except in his look - he looked hungrier for her than ever.

She licked it at first and traced his inner thigh with the tip of her fingers, just to tease him. Thindril was seeing that he was getting impatient but told herself that he would have to wait. After taking her time in making him harder than ever, she then sucked him full, making her Speaker groan again. His hands went to her hair and took a grip of it as she bobbed her head on his groin and grabbed his balls, squeezing them very gently. Lucien was taken by surprise by her sudden want to do that to him, but he definitely welcomed it. Thindril took him all until her throat, making his body tense for a moment until she started bobbing her head again. It didn't take him long to make her pull out, turn her around and drag her to the middle of the tub. "Didn't you want to be punished, sister?" His fingers touched her clit and the tip of his erection poked her entrance again before entering her fully. Thindril gasped at his sudden move and Lucien embraced her from behind and started pounding her hard. Their lustful greed for each other was almost uncontrollable. He squeezed her, grinded into her, kissed her sweet skin everytime he could, Thindril could just moan to his actions, allowing him to touch her and kiss her wherever he wanted.

She held on the edges of the tub while panting hard and moaning softly. Lucien gave her a harder stroke once in a while, making her tremble. His crave for her was fierce and strong, making himself use almost all his self-control to not come too early. Lucien was an assassin, yet, he could also be quite a gentleman in these things for he always let his partner come first. The elf tensed before finding her release, she bit her lip to prevent herself from moaning too loud. Lucien smirked at sight she was giving him before climaxing as well, he struggled for breath as he pounded her hard. Once they were finished, he sat back on the tub and just looked at her amazing vision. Thindril quickly crawled back to his arms, breathing heavily as well.

"You look happy, sister." Lucien teased while tracing her jaw. "Good."

"I am happy now." Thindril replied.

"There were no reasons for you to not be happy before, especially when you were the one responsible for the incident." Lucien noted, tracing her features with the tip of his fingers. Thindril again wouldn't give him an argument because that's what he wanted, or so she thought. She shrugged before getting up and grabbing a towel to dry her body.

"What happened?" He asked while arching an eyebrow.

"I am exhausted. I broke to the Imperial Prison today, remember?" Thindril told him, in fact that was just an excuse to get away from him.

"Yes, you are exhausted, but you are also angry." Lucien noted.

"Indeed, that tends to happen when people don't believe me when I say the truth, especially when those people seem to care about me." The elf muttered. "And I rarely say the truth… I often worry what's the point of it if no one believes me."

"Do not play the victim…"

"I am not playing the victim. I am just tired." She interrupted him with a firm tone. This time Lucien didn't yell at her. "_Good night_, Speaker."


	13. A Dark Proposal

_Mother, she lived! That bloody lizard lived! I never let anyone live before! That disgusting race, they are harder to kill than cockroaches…_

_Mother, mother, at least she didn't saw my face. She didn't recognize me as well, no no no._

_Yet, damn it, mother! Damn it! I was too careless, too reckless! I need to lay low for a while. Not long though, no. They won't rest! Never! _

_I will turn my attention to Bruma now, too long has J'Ghasta rested. But no more, mother! No more!_

-T-

She didn't want to leave her bed, it was too warm and soft and her arm still hurt even though she was bitten over a week now and she tired and she was sleepy. Thindril cuddled with her sheets, feeling their smooth texture against her bare skin, she was a lady accustomed to the best and hadn't really time to relax in last weeks, despite her good adaption to the Sanctuary's lifestyle.

Her last contract involved helping a man faking his death, his name was François Motierre and it had been her most boring contract because the man was a coward. Thindril had to control herself to not accidentally kill him during the job. François told the Dark Brotherhood to exchange his death for his mothers. It kind of repulsed her. Thindril hated her mother and wouldn't do her such thing, this is, if she was still alive. But no matter, she would never have to look at him again and she was now in her warm bed, enjoying a well deserved rest. Everything was alright.

"Are you sleeping or waking up?" Telaendril asked.

Thindril smiled before burying her head in the pillow. "I am so tired." She answered, her voice was muffled by the pillow but was still hearable.

"Then why don't you sleep a little more?" The Bosmer asked.

"Because I would feel lazy…"

"Yes, but there isn't nothing wrong with that, especially when you're tired." Telaendril chuckled and Thindril groaned in response.

"Telaendril, can I ask you something?" Thindril whispered.

"Go ahead, sister."

"Vicente told me that I could ask you for some archery training… Can you teach me?" The Dunmer asked while leaning on her side to face her sister.

"Of course, sister, it would be a pleasure." Telaendril smiled. "I haven't had much time to get to know you, anyway, so this would be a great opportunity!"

"Yes, I agree." Thindril smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, sister." Telaendril nodded, still smiling. There was a pause in her speech, the Bosmer's brown eyes were set on Thindril so she remained quiet "By the way… you seem to have common sense… I need to tell you something… About Antoinette."

"You're worrying me." Thindril frowned slightly, kind of knowing what was about to come for she had the habit of hearing others' talk. "I am all ears."

"She… she _hates_ you, Thindril, and I can't even tell why… She said you were rude to her and thinks…" Telaendril paused, speaking now in a lower tone. "She said that Lucien is into you."

"I caught her staring at me while I sleep. I hate when people do that, that's why she is saying that." Thindril replied. "I know about her little affair with Lucien as well, but I can't really do anything about what she thinks." She shrugged.

"Oh, I see." Telaendril sighed. "Antoinette has always been a difficult girl, she didn't have the best life either, now she thinks that Lucien is in love with her… I try to set in the right path, but it doesn't always work."

"But… is he a player?" Thindril asked curiously.

"Well, that's hard to answer. Yes and no. He never really settled down with anyone, you see, he also never makes promises that he doesn't want to fulfill." The Bosmer answered while sitting down on her bed which was right next to Thindril's. "Lucien is an honest player, if it makes sense…"

"Hmm, I see." Thindril didn't know what to think of Lucien, the truth was that she felt like she was being a little reckless about him, but whenever he was around, the elf felt completely drawn to him and for some reason her brain stopped working. Thindril was starting to fear that her passion was making her weak.

"Thindril, may I now ask you something?" Telaendril's voice broke her thoughts.

"Surely."

"Are you with Lucien?" She paused and Thindril kind of looked away. "I mean, I've seen the way he looks at you and how you avoid sometimes looking at him. I haven't told anything to Antoinette, so don't worry…"

"I… guess so, yes." Thindril sighed. "I don't know, I am not used with being with people without killing them later." Thindril paused and shrugged. Both elves stared at each other after that sentence and then laughed.

"Well sister, I must admit that he never looked at Antoinette like he looks at you." The Bosmer confessed. "But…"

"Don't worry, I have survived five failed marriages, I can survive this too." The Dunmer reassured.

"Good." She nodded. "You can count me and on Grogon as well, we both really like you."

"Thank you, I really appreciate it." Thindril smiled. It was nice to be able to talk to someone about this. "Do you know if Ocheeva is better? I visited her the other day, she seemed a bit… off…"

"She will be fine, but her arm will never be the same. I'd try to focus on spells now, if I was her." The Bosmer sighed. "Or the Sanctuary, I pity her, she was born to kill and now she will never be able to fully use her right arm."

"Yes, that's a shame. It really bothers me that the Black Hand hadn't been able to found the traitor. I have only been here for a month and a half and I am already outraged by this, I can't imagine how you are all feeling." Thindril commented.

"At first we were living in fear." Telaendril told her. "But now… I guess we got used to it, as sad as it sounds…"

"Hmm, I see." The Dunmer nodded. "I guess I will just have to watch my back and get used to it."

"Yes, do be careful , sister." Telaendril nodded. "I am sorry, but I must sleep now. Are you free on Fridas for your marksman lesson?"

"Yes, I am." Thindril smiled while getting up and then dressing herself.

"Good, then." The Bosmer grinned. "May Sithis be with you, sister."

"You too." The Dunmer nodded before leaving. She walked out of her quarters, heading to Vicente's room. It was very early and he should still be awake.

"Brother?" She called softly.

"Come in, dear sister." The vampire answered.

Thindril walked in with a small on her face, to her surprise, Vicente didn't look nearly as happy as he normally did. "Is everything alright?" She asked.

"Yes, sit with me, please." He replied. Thindril did as he told and eyed him curiously.

"You are not a Slayer anymore" Vicente informed. "You are now an Eliminator. Congratulations"

"Thank you." Thindril nodded, knowing that there was something else coming.

"Also, you will receive your contracts from Ocheeva now. I only deal with the youngest members of the family."

"So soon?" She blinked. "I mean, I thought I would be with you for at least more a couple of months."

Vicente smiled. "It actually depends on the person, some stay only a few weeks, others a year." He explained. "But you are ready now, I know it."

"But can I still annoy you with my silly blabber?" Thindril asked with a smile.

"Always, sister." He laughed a bit.

"Are you sure that everything is alright?" The elf insisted, Vicente was normally a good actor. Only a really awful thing would bring him down.

"Yes." He answered again in a rather idly tone.

"Alright… you don't want to talk about it, I get it." Thindril sighed. "But you know you can count on me, right?"

"I do." Vicente nodded. "I'd like to make you an offer, though." He added.

"Yes?" The Dunmer asked curiously.

"As you know, I am a vampire. Being a vampire in this profession can be very useful, my dear." He explained. "Your blood is cold, your heart is hard, Thindril, you represent everything that the Dark Brotherhood stands for." Thindril felt that it was the biggest compliment that someone had given her, but she also knew that he wasn't finished yet so she remained quiet. "I have been wondering if you'd like to become a hunter of the night like myself, a vampire. Then you and I would become a kin, what do you say, dear sister?" He smiled.

"I…" Thindril was caught out of guard, she didn't want to hurt him or offend him for that was quite a generous offer but the truth was that Thindril didn't know what to say. "I don't know, I wasn't expecting that… I… am very honored by your offer." The elf smiled. "But I have to think about it…"

"Ah, yes, it's not a decision to be taken lightly." He agreed. "If you're scared about the pain it might cause, do not worry. It doesn't hurt." His cold fingers reached her neck gently. They felt surprisingly good and refreshing. Thindril unconsciously craned her neck and closed her eyes before noticing what she was doing. "I need to think about it." She repeated in a low tone.

"Right." He nodded while backing off with a small smile.

"Right, I will check if Ocheeva has anything for me." Thindril said while getting up rather quickly. "See you later, brother."

Vicente nodded to her. Thindril left his quarters with a frown in her face, she had the impression that he had used charming spells on her. Thindril had used those on her husbands when they got out of hand or when she really needed someone to do something for her, but she hated when people tried to charm her. The elf didn't think that Vicente was doing it with bad intentions, though, he probably just felt lonely. He had seen his sisters and brothers dying for over two hundred years, after all.

Two hundred years is a long time. Too long.

Her mind was busy with these thoughts until she arrived to Ocheeva's quarters. Ocheeva was sitting and trying to write with her left hand. Thindril knocked the door that was already open.

"Oh, it's you Thindril!" Ocheeva greeted in her usual Argonian accent. "Come in."

The elf walked into Ocheeva's quarters and stood next to her. "How are you feeling, sister?"

"Better, I can't write yet though." Ocheeva replied with a short sigh. "Here is your contract." The Argonian handed her a letter. "You have to kill an Altmer named Faelian and there must be no witnesses to your crime. Don't forget that the Imperial City is the Adamus Phillida's territory."

"Hmm, I see. Any idea of who this Faelian is?" Thindril asked while opening the letter.

"No, I advise you to speak with Telaendril though, she is not an Altmer, but she does have her acquaintances there." Ocheeva suggested. "We just know his name, his race and that he fancies long walks"

"Long walks… that could be useful." The Dunmer commented.

"Indeed. Yet, if possible, do away with Faelian someplace out of the way. Definitely indoors, with no other people around. A secure location, with no witnesses" Ocheeva explained. "It's really important for you to be discreet."

"Don't worry, sister, I'm on it." Thindril said while folding her letter.

"Good luck, sister. May Sithis be with you." Ocheeva nodded.

"Thank you, get better, sister." Thindril replied before leaving Ocheeva's quarters. She knew that Telaendril would be sleeping, so Thindril decided to go shopping. She had gathered quite an amount of money thanks to her successful contracts and wanted to buy a nice dress to go to the Imperial City. It would be easier for people to trust her if she was looking like a high class citizen. Thindril took a short trip to Borba's Goods and Stores, the store was owned by an Orc who used to be an adventurer. It was a bit hard to find high quality goods in Cheydinhal, especially dresses which weren't considered as important as armor or weapons. However, Thindril managed to buy a second hand dress. It was long and blue with a golden needlework in its edges. Despite being a second-hand good, the dress was intact. It had been found in a cave, Borba said, and probably had at least a hundred of years. It fit Thindril's body perfectly. No one in the Imperial City would guess that she was just a just a murderer.

Thindril went back to the Sanctuary, she put the dress in her drawers before going back to the common room to read. The elf couldn't help but to smirk to herself, tomorrow would be such an interesting day. She was about to live her old life, but from other perspective and with a dark goal.


	14. Releasing Atraena

**I am so sorry for taking so long to post this. College has been killing me. Anyways, here it is and I hope you enjoy it! I can promise you a lot of revealed secrets and character drama in the future that wasn't in Oblivion, so stay tuned. Thank you all!**

-T-

The Talos Plaza District was Telaendril's suggestion. Thindril put her dress on, her daggers stuck between her stockings and rented a cart to take her to her destination. She had a sack with her shrouded armor, just in case, and bought a new part of shoes with small heels. That would allow her to look more elegant and the elf would still be able to run if needed. The cart helped her to look normal. If anyone asked, she was Ralsa and had just arrived from Morrowind. There were many Ralsas in Morrowind, so it would be really hard to track her if anything went wrong.

The trip was shorter than usual thanks to the horses, the rider had said his name several times but Thindril didn't pay attention. He was an Imperial and all he only talked about mudcrabs. It didn't take long for Thindril to fall asleep at the monotone sound of his voice.

"Here we are, ma'am." He told her once they were at the Imperial City's gates.

"Huh?" She asked, slightly confused.

"We're here." The Imperial repeated.

"Oh." She rubbed her eyes. "How much?"

"Thirty septims." The man answered.

Thindril gave him the money before venturing inside the Imperial City. "Good afternoon, ma'am." A guard said, Thindril nodded and smiled at him before walking to the Tiber Septim Hotel. Her last husband took her there once and Thindril was quite fond of the place. The Dunmer walked into the hotel and was immediately greeted by its luxury. Long red curtains on the windows, golden tableware, the finest foods, nobles walking around with their expensive words and clothing. Thindril glanced around before walking to a woman who was sitting by a wooden desk. Her face was familiar, maybe she owned this place.

"Good morning ma'am." She greeted with a polite smile. "How may I assist you?"

"I wish to rent a room for the night." Thindril answered.

"Surely, that would be twenty five septims." The Imperial woman answered. "Your room is the upstairs. It's the third one on the left."

"Thank you." Thindril smiled while handing her the money. She brushed past a group of Redguards before walking in her bedroom. They seemed to be quite glad about something, but the elf didn't stay to hear their conversation – she had more important things to do. Once she was in her room, the elf put her sack under her bed before leaving to the corridor and locking the door tightly. She stuck her key in her bra before heading downstairs, looking for an Altmer. Any Altmer.

Thindril found a place by a small table and started nibbling at the snacks after ordering some mead. She now took a proper look at her surroundings. There was a Bosmer dressed in red at the corner, looking rather nervous. There were the Redguards that walked past her near the bar. There were also two Imperials that seemed to be married and an Altmer woman who also looked very nervous.

Thindril eyed the woman cautiously, wondering if she knew this Faelian. She took a sip of her mead and when she raised her look, the mer who she had seen seconds ago was now looking at her. "I am so sorry to bother you…" She started. "But do you know where is my husband?"

"Who is your husband?" The Dunmer asked, a bit startled by the sudden approach.

"His name is Faelian."

Thindril did her best to conceive her surprise. It had been far too easy. Maybe this woman knew who Thindril truly was? The elf had no way of knowing. For now she would just thank Sithis in her mind and keep het cool. "Never heard of him, but dear, you do look quite nervous. Why don't you sit with me? Maybe I can help you?" Thindril offered with an inviting smile.

"Oh thank you, I've been so worried." She confessed. "I am sorry, I didn't even introduced myself. My name is Atraena." The elf said with a weak smile.

"I am Ralsa. It's fine, I can see you're really worried. But what happened to your husband?"

"He... he's my sweet. My true love. But I don't know why I'm telling this to you. I mean, we hardly know each other and all..." Atraena stammered before rubbing her forehead.

"I am willing to help, I am currently visiting the city and these will be my last days in Cyrodiil." Thindril told a bit of herself, trying to get her trust. "My husband couldn't come with me, I am a merchant and he's a battlemage you see. I always worry about him being attacked my bandits, necromancers and gods know what." Thindril sighed, she was actually married to a wizard back then so she kind of knew what she was talking about. "So yes, I don't know what happened to your husband, but I kind of understand your situation…"

Atraena looked at her like she was almost bursting into tears. "Please, I... I don't mean to get emotional but... I feel I can you understand..." She stammered. "I just don't know what to do about Faelian! All he thinks about, all he cares about, is skooma! He was a fine young man once. But he's lost everything. His looks, his money... his self-respect." Atraena sobbed, Thindril remained quiet and held her hands, listening closely to every word she had to say. "I followed him a few times, to see where he goes. He walks around the city looking for skooma, and then goes to Lorkmir's house for several hours. It's in the Elven Gardens District. I think the house is deserted. That's why he goes there. So he can escape from life and do his skooma!" She said now, almost yelling and making other people stare at them. Thindril glared at them making them look away. "Thank you for listening. You're a good friend. I just hope my sweet Faelian can clean himself up, or that awful skooma will be the death of him!"

Thindril felt like she had done her job too easily, but it didn't stop her from being satisfied with her work. She felt like Sithis was watching over her back in that time. "I hope so, my dear." Thindril said while wiping her tears with her thumb. "If you ever need to talk, please come to me. I do hope he realizes the wonderful woman he has on his side."

"Thank you so much. Now, I should rest… yes… Faelian will be home soon, I hope." Atraena left the table still very disturbed. Thindril watched her leave, she decided to stay a little longer to not attract attention. The Redguards were having a lively conversation in their corner, Thindril had the feeling that they were some sort of criminals. They were all heavily armed, their clothes weren't particularly clean or expensive but they seemed to have much gold with them by everything they were ordering.

After spending a good half an hour in that room, Thindril decided to go outside and headed to the Elven Gardens District, looking for the house that Atraena mentioned.

"Hey, you…" She called a beggar. The poor woman looked up to her, slightly confused. "Do you know where Lorkmir's house is?" Thindril asked while giving the beggar five coins.

"Ohh, yes kind lady, it's just over there in the corner. The second on the left." She grinned, showing her missing teeth. "You don't look like you're into Skooma though, are you Faelian's new friend?"

"Yes, but keep it secret." She winked. "Thank you." Thindril smiled lightly, cringing a bit at her face. She took the beggar's directions and found the house she was looking for. It was not locked and Thindril only had to push the door to get in. She made sure that no one saw her coming in and closed the door behind her. An Altmer was standing in the middle of the room, he was bald, his skin was yellower than usual and was dressed in rags. "Faelian?" She called gently, reaching for the Blade of Woe that was stuck in her stocking.

"Faelian? Hey! That's my name! Yeah, I'm Faelian." He drawled with a silly smile on his face while turning his ruined face to her.

"Good." She grinned, holding her dagger in a non-aggressive way for now. "I want your soul, Faelian." The Dunmer said while putting her dagger gently on his lips.

"My... my soul?" He blinked. "Whoah. Wow. Yeah, okay... Yeah! That sounds... great!" The Altmer stammered with another silly smile on his face. "You can have my soul! Can I... Can I have your soul too?"

"No." Thindril circled him, making his back being turned to her. That way his blood wouldn't stain her dress. She pushed back what was left of his hair and slit his throat. Faelian made a terrible grunting noise before falling to his knees, spilling blood all over the floor and walls.

"Atraena is better without you anyways, I am doing her a favor, you know?" Those were the last words Faelian heard before Thindril cleaned her dagger with his rags before sticking it back to her stocking. She left the house, careful to not step on the blood. Thindril made her way to the Market District. After all, she didn't want to come back to the hotel too soon. She admired the red banners with the symbol of the Dragonborns, there were stone bridges that connected some of the buildings. People from all races wandered in the streets, chatting about the latest events and shopping.

Since Thindril still hadn't many clothes, she took this opportunity to restore her stock. She also bought potions and poisons for her future contracts. Thindril hadn't stepped in the Imperial City for two years now and she kind of missed the chaos and the movement, yet, she couldn't help but to feel out of place. Thindril was once a woman that fit perfectly in that sort of environment and apparently there was nothing wrong with her, but she couldn't help but to feel slightly uncomfortable. Thindril really couldn't wait to arrive to her rented room and just relax. She went back to Talos Plaza District once the sun started to set down. Once she walked into the Tiber Septim Hotel, Thindril tried to look for Atraena, but she fortunately wasn't there. Only the Bosmer and a group of Imperials that she hadn't seen before were in the room and those did not disturb her.

Thindril made her way up to her room, she opened the door and laid down on the bed after locking herself in. She lazily took off her clothes, shoes and daggers before slipping inside the silk sheets that covered the bed. City life could be exhausting and Thindril wasn't used to it. Not anymore, at least. But it was not all bad – she had a nice bed to sleep in, totally worthy of the twenty fife septims that it cost her.


	15. Angry Sinners

**Be ready for some drama, yes?**

-T-

Thindril arrived early to the Sanctuary, for she left the Imperial City before dawn had broken. Ralsa was now little more than a ghost in Tiber Septim Hotel and Thindril would avoid the place for another four years. Cheydinhal was now acquiring the familiar feeling that Kvatch once gave to her and that was good. Once Thindril was down the ladder, the elf made her way to Ocheeva's room, only but to find her deeply asleep. Thindril let her be. She heard Ocheeva was the only person that survived the traitor's fury. Having right arm useless was a bitter payment, but she became even more respected by everyone in the family.

When the Dunmer walked back to the common room, she saw Lucien who looked like he had just arrived as well. "Greetings, sister." Lucien said with a small smirk while cupping her cheek.

"Don't touch me like that. We're in public…" She reminded him, yet couldn't avoid but to lean to his touch.

"We are alone." He corrected. "You look happier now." Lucien noted before taking a proper look at her. "So, that is how you looked when you went to all those parties with your dead husbands…" He said while eyeing her curves.

"I _am_ happy." She corrected him with a small smile. "I looked better, why? Jealous?"

"No, you only married them because you did not know me back then." Lucien answered.

"Careful." Thindril warned with a small smirk, leaning closer to him.

"Are you denying me?" Lucien whispered while wrapping his strong arm around her waist and pulling her to him.

"I would never deny you, my Speaker." She answered before nibbling on his lip and tugging on it with her teeth. Lucien rested his forehead against hers while pushing her gently against the wall.

"Not here, not now…" He whispered, but it was Thindril's turn to not to listen. She grabbed him by his arm and walked into the training room which was fortunately empty. Thindril closed the door behind him, smirking mischievously.

"Grogon is here, he just walked to see Vicente's, who is also here and so is Ocheeva…"

"That means we have to be quick." She concluded while taking off one of the straps of her dress. Lucien eyed her for a few seconds before grabbing her butt and lifting her to the nearest table. Thindril lifted her dress and wrapped hers legs around him. Their lips met and he pulled down his pants, entering her with no warning. Thindril let out a suppressed groan and bit her lip from preventing her to make more noises.

Only their short gasps and his soft slaps on her butt could be heard in the room. Thindril tried to kiss him as much as she could so she wouldn't make much noise, but she soon found herself to be out of breath. His hands quickly grasped her bare breasts, making her shudder as his thrusts were harder and harder.

"Have I ever told you how good you are?" The elf moaned, her face flushed with excitement.

"You do not need to say it." He smirked while giving her a deeper thrust and making her wince in both pain and pleasure. Her head titled back and he took her by her hips and pounded into her like he never had before. The table was shaking, her limbs were trembling, her teeth were biting her lower lip and suppressing her moans.

"By Sithis… What is this?"

None of them two had proffered those words. Thindril felt a wave of anger against whoever interrupted them. They stared at each other before putting their clothes back on, fortunately, there wasn't much to cover. Thindril peeked at the door. It was Vicente. How awkward.

Lucien left the room without looking at him, Thindril was about to do the same when Vicente grabbed her arm and pushed her inside. "What was that?" He snapped. Thindril had never seen him so angry.

"You know what that was, for Sithis' sake." She snarled. "Let me go."

"No." He blocked the way out. "You don't know what you're doing, Lucien will use you and throw you away like he does to every girl."

"I stopped being a little girl long ago, Vicente." Thindril spat. "This is not your business, leave me alone."

"It is my business because I care for you." Vicente replied still with a certain harshness in his tone. "What if you get pregnant? What if he leaves you for the next newcomer?"

Thindril looked at Vicente with surprised eyes. "Don't worry about me getting pregnant." Thindril told him. "And don't worry about me getting my heart broken. I know how to get past that." She said, more to convince herself.

"Killing Lucien wouldn't be a good idea…"

"Spare me from your irony." She interrupted him abruptly. "Now, if you excuse me." Thindril said while walking off and tying her messy hair up.

-T-

There was wine in the kitchens, thank Sithis.

Lucien was finding himself to be incredibly dumb and stupid.

He should have never been caught with Thindril. The only good thing was it was Vicente who caught them and Vicente knew how to keep secrets.

"Lucien, my love…"

_What have I done to deserve such foul company now_, he thought.

"What is it Antoinette?" He replied rather abruptly.

"Oh, it's just…" He watched insecurity fill her light blue eyes. "You have been so absent…"

"I know." He replied dryly.

"Maybe you need to relax, yes?" Antoinette suggested with a small smile while putting her hands on his shoulders.

"No." Lucien uttered. "No, Antoinette. Sit here. I need to talk to you."

She tensed for a moment before taking the seat in front of him. "Listen carefully." Her Speaker started. "Whatever we had – it is over."

"What? Why?" She blinked, his statement made her almost choke in her own saliva.

"I never made you any kind of promises, Antoinette, I am sorry if you thought…" Lucien sighed. "There are other men, Antoinette, do you remember Leonard in the Skingard Sanctuary? He finds you…"

"I don't care about Leonard, Lucien!" She shouted, tears filling her eyes and her wrists punching the table. "I only care about you. You're never going to find anyone who cares about you like I do!"

"I know." He said bitterly. "But I do not feel the same, Antoinette, I…"

"Is this about the Ashbron?" Antoinette asked.

"Do not call her Ashborn, Antoinette!" He roared.

"But that's what she is! An Ashborn and an attention whore and a slut! She is two ranks above me! Why? Is she sleeping her way up, Lucien?" Now Antoinette wasn't snapping, she wasn't even shouting back. Her tone was dangerously low. Lucien recognized it, it was the tone that she used in the first time he watched her kill.

"Do not let jealousy consume you, Antoinette or you will ruin yourself." Lucien tried to calm her down and casted a charm spell on her. It worked, kind of.

"I don't have much to lose, you know." Antoinette replied, her tone was still low and her eyes carried a wicked fire, but she seemed to be calmer.

"You do, sister. You are still young." Lucien said in a calm tone, using a stronger spell.

"I am still young…" she repeated. "But I still want you."

Lucien sighed in despair, Antoinette was a persistent girl. She would never give up so easily.

"Need a hand, brother?" A soft voice echoed behind the Speaker, making him jump.

"By Sithis, do _not_ sneak on me like that!" Lucien snapped to Vicente. Vicente just grinned.

"Antoinette, dear…" The vampire started while using his natural seduction power. "You do need to calm yourself down." Vicente said while holding her hand gently. "You have been trough worse and it is not the end of the world, right?" He added while leading her to the door. Antoinette seemed to be completely hypnotized and convinced that her brother was saying the truth. "Right?" He asked again.

"Right." She nodded.

"Now take a nap and don't think too much about this." Vicente told her. Antoinette nodded and left the kitchens, leaving the vampire and the speaker alone. The silence was heavy and awkward.

"I hope that you will be discreet about this…"

"Always." Vicente interrupted with a nod. "I love you as a brother, Lucien, but I love Thindril as well. I would hate to see her hurt, especially because of you." His red eyes eyed him as he filled his cup with mead.

"I am _not_ going to hurt her, Vicente." Lucien drawled.

"You said the same about Monica…" The vampire reminded him. Lucien always seemed to have a short memory when it came to women.

"I loved Monica, you knew that." Lucien glared at the vampire. "It was not my fault…"

"No, it was not, but it only took you two weeks to find comfort in another woman's arms, right?" Vicente interrupted him again, Lucien was his superior of course, but few people knew that Vicente had actually raised him. He surely gave him sermons when no one was around.

"Do not remind me of those times, please, Vicente." Lucien closed his eyes.

"Do you _still_ love Monica?"

"No."

"Do you love Thindril?"

Lucien bit his lip, he never said that, not even to himself.

"Do you?"

"Yes."

"You better treat her well then, otherwise…" Vicente warned.

"Otherwise?" Lucien asked while quirking an eyebrow.

"Otherwise…" Vicente said while getting up. "I'll make her mine myself. You know that I have always been a patient man."

Vicente left the room. Lucien gripped his cup tightly, his eyes were flashing with anger but his body was still. He remained like that for a few minutes before heading to the sleeping quarters.

Thindril was there as he had expected, she had now changed to more comfortable clothing and Antoinette was deeply asleep in her bed. Lucien sat on Thindril's bed, she put aside the book she was reading and eyed him.

"You don't look pleased." She noted.

"I am fine." He cupped her cheek.

"Are you mad at me? For being reckless?"

"No." Lucien shook his head. "Never." His fingers traced her jaw gently, Thindril smiled and leaned to his touch. He stared at her for a few moments. "You are so beautiful."

"Thank you, but you should keep your voice down just in case…" Thindril smiled while glancing at Antoinette. It was the first time that Lucien complimented her so directly, he looked peaceful, almost like a normal man. Thindril liked it.

"Why on Oblivion did he cheat on you?" Lucien said more to himself while looking into her eyes. Thindril her happy expression soon turned into confused but remained quiet. "We better lay low for a while, Vicente will not say a thing about us."

Thindril gave him a short nod. "Yes, he's reliable."

"Yes." Lucien nodded back. "And I need to go now, I am already late." He said while getting up and pulling his hood to him. "May Sithis be with you." Lucien whispered before kissing her lips goodbye. Thindril watched him leave and then stared at the door for a good while, wondering why he was acting so differently.


	16. The Void's Breath

Everything was dark, smoky and cold, although there was no wind or moon. She could barely see the ground beneath her or what lied ahead of her. The emptiness of the place swallowed her.

_**Thindril, **_

A heavy voice whispered. She jumped at the noise before realizing that she had heard it before. It was the same voice that spoke to her in the main entrance of the Sanctuary.

_**Your arrival in the Brotherhood announces the upcoming threat of total destruction**_

The voice echoed in her head and in heart and it made her feel at the breach of madness. It saw her. It saw her from within.

_**You must live when others shall die,**_

_**You must be strong when others shall fall,**_

_**Uncover the full truth and cleanse the Dark Brotherhood from its filth,**_

_**My sweetest, deadliest Child…**_

Someone let out a scream which made her bones skin crawl. She woke up, gasping and sweating. Her head was aching and seemed to be about to explode. She was scared and desperate for no reason, like something awful had just happened. The elf tried to convince herself that it was just a dream, but it didn't work. What just happened didn't feel like a dream because not even nightmares were that bad.

"The poor cub is not used to travel to the Void." The Khajiit said, amused.

"What?" Thindril jumped again and turned her gaze to M'raaj-Dar who found the situation quite funny.

"I knew you were not ready for this, you coming from good families and all." He sighed. "Those dreams will become more frequent, they will break you from the inside. I can't wait to see it." M'raaj-Dar smirked, showing his feline fangs.

"Why is it like that? Is that really the Void? Why do we feel so bad in there?" Thindril ignored his insults and couldn't get rid of the weird feeling like something was tightening her heart.

"Because we are alive, you stupid ape." M'raaj-Dar replied impatiently. "Yes, that was the Void. You're feeling the heaviness in your heart, aren't you? That's how our victims feel for the whole eternity. You are a murderer though, even though that's an insult to us… anyway, do not worry much. If Sithis is kind to you, you will feel lighter than a feather in there once you disconnect from this world." The Khajiit said these last words with bitter resentment. "Now go bother someone else, ape."

Thindril was actually admired by the little cat's behavior. He had been patient enough to explain what had just happened to her. She wasn't sure if Antoinette would be so kind. It had been the longest conversation that she had with him since their presentation. He often muttered insults at her, but Thindril never reacted. She had actually been called far worse when she married Volandro, a High-Elf and a powerful mage. Thindril had never been much of a gold-digger, but when Volandro died she found herself swimming in gold.

Ah, good old times.

The Dunmer laid back on the bed and sighed. The events of yesterday suddenly came to her mind. Vicente catching them, Lucien acting strange, Antoinette looking like a lunatic… Thindril thought that maybe she just needed to get up, have a bath, eat something, kill someone… it would at least keep her distracted from her eventful life.

The only good thing was that she didn't need to spend much with Vicente anymore. He caught her having sex. _Having sex_. Thindril felt so embarrassed. She felt like she disappointed him as well. Their next meeting would be so awkward that Thindril would avoid him a bit. Yet, she needed someone to talk about whatever had happened to her that night.

_Guess it is time to get really close to Ocheeva._

The elf quickly changed to her shrouded armor and went upstairs to the common room and then knocked on Ocheeva's door.

"Come in, Thindril." She said with her Argonian accent.

"I can never surprise you, can I?" Thindril asked with a smile while coming in.

"Not now, you, M'raaj-Dar and Vicente are the only ones here. Unfortunately for you, I know that M'raaj-Dar is sleeping and Vicente just left the room, so." Ocheeva answered, smiling back. "Take a seat. I suppose you're looking for more work?"

"Yes, but… I have a few questions…"

"I am all ears, sister."

"I had a dream today… a very strange dream. I was in a dark, cold place. It was smoky and a voice… A whisper talked to me." Thindril started, Ocheeva nodded like she knew perfectly what Thindril was talking about.

"The Void's Breath, yes… Not all Dark Brotherhood members have it, but it is not an uncommon phenomenon." She explained. "I have it as well, I know how terrifying it can be. They said the place is completely lovely when we die and serve our Dread Father in his own realm, though."

"Yes, M'raaj-Dar said that we felt terrible in there because we were still alive…" Thindril commented while sneering slightly.

"M'raaj-Dar always had the worse dreams. He used to be sick for the rest of the day when he had them." Ocheeva sighed. "Don't tell him I said this, though, I actually noticed that you have seen better days. I just don't want you to worry."

"Oh, I won't, I don't even talk to him." Thindril shrugged.

"He will accept you, eventually." Ocheeva nodded. "Those dreams are a sign that you are among the gifted."

"Well, that doesn't bother me now." The elf said, eager to stop talking about the kitty. "You said something about a new contract?" Thindril changed the subject.

"Yes, you need to return to the Imperial city again, although you will avoid the Talos Plaza District as much as possible" Ocheeva started explained, Thindril didn't look very excited to return to the city but she would do her best to remain unseen. "This is actually a group contract, you will be working with Teinaava, Gorgon, Antoinette and another member of the Bruma Sanctuary named Sebastien"

Thindril now looked even less excited about working with Antoinette, but she didn't say a word about it. Thindril wouldn't even be rude to her if the Breton behaved.

"Irene Metrick, Samuel Bantien, Othrelos, Mandil and Ilda Vilnorman are the targets. Teinaava will take care of Othrelos, you will take care of Mandil, Antoinette will kill Samuel, Leonard will take care of Ilda and Gorgon will kill Irene." She paused. Thindril took that moment to fix all those new names that Ocheeva had just introduced to her. "You all must kill all these people in their homes tomorrow at one pm and you must leave a message."

"I have a question. Won't Adamus Phillida suspect that we are involved?" Thindril asked.

"Probably, but if we remain unseen…" Ocheeva smirked. "Your message for Mandil will be the way you execute the killing. I trust that you don't have a weak stomach?"

"Not anymore, no."

"You must stab her in her back three times. They you must take her eyes and ears off and then you must sew her mouth." Ocheeva explained.

"Poor elf…" Thindril commented with a small smile.

"Indeed." Ocheeva agreed.

"How do I make sure that she's in her house, though?"

"Oh, don't worry, she will be. The person who hired us knows these people pretty well."

"Alright… I do hope so. Am I supposed to leave with the others?"

"Not if you don't want to. Gorgon and Teinaava went to the Blacksmith but should be coming back soon." She informed.

"Oh, that's good. I'll travel with them." Thindril nodded while getting up. "I'm going to get ready."

"May Sithis be with you, sister…"

"You too." The Elf replied before leaving Ocheeva's room

-T-

"I need more money for an enchantment."

"Mathieu, the last try went wrong…"

"So what? The Dark Brotherhood has many members. Ocheeva's time will come soon. Now I will focus on someone else."

"Alright. How much?"

"Five thousand septims for now."

"Five thousand? By Akatosh!"

"Oh please, don't act like you're going to miss the money!"

"Fine, but you better get someone killed this time."

"Shh, don't make such a hassle. Ocheeva was lucky. It won't happen again."

"Just bring them down!"

"I will, friend."

_Soon, mother, soon._


	17. The Weight of Betrayal

"It's an Oblivion gate."

Gorgon wrinkled his nose and Thindril frowned. Only Teinaava remained completely calm as always.

"Someone's closing them, right?" Thindril asked. "I heard some rumors."

"Yes, an Imperial prisoner, they say. He was released in the day when the Emperor was murdered. He pardoned his crimes." Teinaava told them.

"Guess it was his lucky day. Or not. Closing those gates must be a really bad job to have." Gorgon joked.

"You're terrible, Gorgon." Thindril laughed. "But let's go, that thing gives me chills."

"Yeah, before the Deadra start to pop out all over the place." Gorgon said and the three of them went back to the road. They were on their way to the Imperial city, heading for their preys' safe heaven.

"Thank Sithis Antoinette is already there, or else we would have a cat fight on the way." Teinaava joked.

"Oh, you find it funny she's a bitch to me?"

"No, of course not, sweet sister. But Antoinette is always a source of a good laugh." Teinaava smiled.

"She has been calmer lately, I think that Lucien talked to her and calmed her down." Thindril sighed.

"Don't fool yourself, she will never give up." Teinaava warned.

"Yeah, she may look calm, but deep down she isn't." Gorgon agreed.

Thindril stood silent. She wasn't scared of Antoinette, most of the time she found the Breton ridiculous and pitiful with all her manias and silly dreams. With time, Thindril grew to hate her. She could no longer control the sick feeling in her gut everytime she set her red eyes on her. It was more than obvious to everyone that the only reason that they hadn't tried to kill each other for good was because the Tenets didn't allow it.

The road from Cheydinhall to the Imperial City was short, quick and generally, not very dangerous. Seeing an Argonian, an Orc and Dunmer together was already too much of an odd sight. They only saw the occasional Legion soldier or merchants passing by with all their goods.

Once in the Imperial city, Thindril was greeted again by the great walls and the White-Gold Tower. She pulled her dark hood, hoping to not cross paths with Atraena or anyone else that she met in her last visit. It would be very hard for her to come up with a good explanation.

"I never understood why everyone loved this place." Gorgon mumbled. "Everything looks so strained and everyone is always so busy. It's like they're paying to be bothered."

"You know, men can be the strangest kind sometimes." Teinaava shrugged.

Thindril didn't say anything, her eyes soon recognized a familiar figure. Atraena was walked in the same road as them, in their direction. Thindril panicked. She turned her head to the side and hoped not to be seen.

"Guys… can we get out of this district. I fulfilled that contract recently…" She whispered.

"Oh, sorry, we forgot. Come, let's go to the Market District. The others should be waiting." Teinaava whispered back.

The group walked to the market district which was far busier than the Talos Plaza. They were all going to meet in an alley between the shops. The meeting would be as short as possible and after it, the killing would begin. It was almost one o'clock and everyone was there. Thindril eyed the member of the other Sanctuary, Leonard, he was a Breton with a pretty face. But then again, most Bretons were pretty and had this classic air in them. He was taller than most, though, and had long black hair that fell to his shoulders.

"Everyone is here, great!" Antoinette smiled. "I trust we all know our preys?"

Thindril sighed. Antoinette wanted to lead; thankfully everyone should know what to do without needing her counseling or the contract would certainly not succeed.

"Let's get this over and done with." Gorgon mumbled.

"Yes, I suppose we all know what to do, Antoinette. Do you all know the clock in the main square?" Teinaava asked. "Maybe we should guide us by it, if we can. There are other clocks around the district and they are always on time, so it might help."

"Yes, and I've checked that all our targets are at home alone." Leonard nodded.

"Good… Maybe we should go then? We only have fifteen minutes now. Perhaps we should meet here once the contract is finished? To make sure that everything went well?" Leonard suggested.

"Yes, that is good. Now, let's go." Gorgon said. The group split and each of them headed to their goals. Thindril went to Mandil's house. It was easy for her to walk in since the door wasn't locked. Thindril sneaked to her dining room, where she was eating. It would be hard to stab her in back since she was sitting, but something else came to her mind.

The Dunmer grabbed her by her hair, taking the elf by surprise and pushed her face to the table before stabbing her between the ribs. Mandil groaned before gasping for air, she twisted in pain after Thindril had stabbed her three times. Thankfully, Thindril's robes were black because she was soon covered in Mandil's blood. The Dunmer dragged her by her hair on the floor and straddled her. "Fuck, I never took somebody's eyes off." Thindril mumbled to herself. She grabbed the Blade of Woe and decided to start by Mandil's ears and leave the eyes for the end. Once she was finished with the ears, the Bosmer trembled one last time in pain before dying.

Thindril had a strong and thick needle and sewing thread that she had borrowed from Taleandril for this contract, she quickly grabbed her material and started sewing Mandil's mouth. It was pretty messy, Thindril had blood all over her fingers which made the sewing harder. Once it was done, Thindril looked around for a spoon to help her with the eyes. She found a silver spoon by the table and grabbed it, proceeding by trying to take Mandil's eyes off. Thindril was sloppy at first since she had never done this before. She felt sick in her stomach and could vomit at any moment. Popping someone eyes out was by far the nastiest sight she had ever seen and done. Thindril could actually feel the eye unglue for the Bosmer's skull.

"You can do this, come on…" She breathed.

The other eye popped out more easily. Thindril sighed in relief and walked up to look for some water to wash her face and hands. She smelled like blood and death. Never before in her murders had the smell been so strong. Thindril found water inside a jar and tried to look like she hadn't just committed a murder, then she saw a bottle of wine and poured on her clothes because in the Imperial city it was better smell like a drunken woman than a murderer.

Thindril checked the time once she found herself back in the street. She had taken half an hour in doing the whole thing. _Strange_, she thought, It had seemed much more to her. The Dunmer soon walked back to the alley.

"Stop! You are both imprisoned by murder and trespassing."An Imperial guard said to Leonard and Teinaava.

"Of course we are." Leonard smiled and unsheathed his sword before engaging in a fight with the guard. The guard quickly pierced Leonard's guts with his sword. Teinaava then slit the guard's throat right away with his dagger and ran out. "Come, we must go!" He said quickly while grabbing Thindril's hand.

"W-what… what happened?" She asked, confused.

"Someone betrayed us!"

More guards soon came, but Teinaava and Thindril were both fast on their feet. Sometimes they were forced to kill one or two that got in their way. After crossing the Imperial Palace and the Temple district, they managed to get to the bridge that connected the Waterfront with the city. Out of breath and exhausted, Thindril thought that it would be it – they were both getting arrested and spend the rest of their lives in jail.

"Hold my hand and jump." Teinaava breathed.

"Are you crazy?"

"It's the only way!" He bawled. The guards had surrounded them.

"You still have the chance to surrender one of them said." One of them said. "Lay down your weapons and walk back four steps!"

"One, two, three… Now!" Teinaava and Thindril both jumped to the water. She held her breath and squeezed Teinaava's hand as tightly as she could. The guards screamed something that wasn't perceptible underwater and arrows started to fly. Teinaava suddenly put her on his back, wrapped her arms around his torso and then swam very fast. Thindril closed her eyes and hoped that his swimming skills would help them escape. The elf soon needed air. She wouldn't be able to hold her breath for much longer and didn't know how to say that to Teinaava, thankfully, he went back to the surface.

"Look, it's Lucien and Gorgon! They have horses! We're almost there, sister." He encouraged her but when Teinaava finished talking, something hit her. An arrow had pierced her back somewhere. Thindril grasped for air before letting go of Teinaava with the pain and the sudden impact. It all went dark.


	18. Under the Jeralls' Wing

**Thank you for your support! If you read my other fanfic, Sins of the Dovahkiin, be ready to soon have some spoilers about this fanfic. I am just sending the word here for those who don't want to know yet how this story will end. However, be ready for something big!**

-T-

"Shh, not so fast." A familiar voice whispered. "Here, have some water."

It was pitch dark, but Thindril could see a hooded figure in front of her. She soon recognized it was Lucien. The elf drank the water before laying her head down again.

"Did all that happen?" Thindril whispered.

"Yes, you were hit by an arrow and passed out for a few hours. You are alright, though. The armor protected you." Lucien answered.

"And the others?"

"Gorgon and Teinaava are right here."

"We're fine little sister." She heard Gorgon say.

"And… Antoinette?"

"No word of her yet." Lucien answered while stroking her hair. "We will stay off the road for a while, the Legion is looking for you all – for us all." He then paused. "Someone wanted to ruin the contract for us and get you all arrested or killed… The traitor almost succeeded."

"Ugh… that's terrible news… but thank you, thank you all. Especially you, Teinaava, you saved my life. I won't forget it." Thindril murmured.

"Don't thank me, sister, we have to stick together in these situations." He smiled. "Everything will be fine."

"Yes… now let's hunt a deer or two because I am getting starving." Gorgon mumbled.

"Be careful. There is an Oblivion Gate right behind that hill." Lucien warned.

"Don't worry, brother." Teinaava nodded before both of them disappeared into the darkness of the woods.

Lucien held her hand. "For a moment I thought I had lost you." He confessed.

"You will never lose me, I'd come back to hunt you." She gave him a small smile.

"Well, if you insist." He smiled back while interlacing his fingers with hers. "I need to get this traitor. Now more than ever…. I do not even know why and how the Black Hand did not get him yet..."

"Yes, you do need to get him." Thindril nodded. "And I will help you."

"No, you are in great danger now." Lucien sighed. "He probably knows we are together. If he wants to hit me, he will come to you, not me."

"I can defend myself, Lucien." She replied.

"So did the other twenty members of our brotherhood that died. Some died terrible deaths. Thindril, I am your Speaker, so believe me. It is dangerous. People are starting to be horrified of leaving their sanctuaries." He explained. "I cannot afford losing any of you in Cheydinhal, especially you. You are all my family."

Thindril looked at him and sighed. Fortunately her shoulder didn't hurt that bad. She could feel the bandages beneath her and a slight pain. "Will this leave a scar?"

"It is likely, yes." Lucien nodded.

"I should stop worrying about my looks, anyway, my maneater phase is over." She mumbled.

"I truly hope so, sister. And I like your scars. Interesting people _have_ scars." He smiled. "I will leave tomorrow morning. I am going to take care of your bounty and try to find Antoinette."

"Aren't they after you too?"

"Yes and no, on one hand I helped you escape but on the other, they never really saw my face." Lucien explained. "Besides, I know some members of the Thieves Guild. I will not be talking to the guards directly."

"Oh okay, I won't worry so much then." Thindril smiled while playing with his fingers. "Do the people in the Sanctuary know?"

"Only Vicente and Ocheeva." Lucien nodded. "Vicente actually said that he might come here tomorrow at night."

"We're not far from Cheydinhal, then?" Thindril raised her eyebrows.

"No. The city is in that direction." Lucien pointed to East. "We cannot see it because of these rocks, the same rocks that protect us from curious eyes."

"Hmm, how smart of you to take us here."

"A man in my condition often needs shelter from the outside world. I bet you can understand that now." He smirked.

"I understand you perfectly, my Speaker."

"As I thought." Lucien stroked her red hair gently. "Now rest, love. I will wake you up when the food is ready."

Thindril nodded and leaned her head to the side "Thank you, love."

-T-

_Failure, mother! Again!_

_I had everything planned, everything! But it went wrong, they managed to escape!_

_Rumors say that Lucien, the Orc, the lizard and the Dunmer are hiding near Cheydinhal, but no one seems to find them!_

_Antoinette is gone too! She vanished! Like dust!_

_I cannot accept this as a defeat, mother, no no no no no, I will make that Lucien pig bleed._

_But before I do, I make sure he will know how it's like to see the head of someone fall from their shoulders._

-T-

"By Sithis, I am sick and tired of this dammed wait." Gorgon sighed. "And I miss Telaendril…"

"We can't go out there… We are wanted criminals and by now the information has spread all over Cyrodiil." Teinaava reminded him.

"Teinaava is right, Gorgon. This is a good hide-out. We are lucky for being here and not rotting in a random prison." Thindril said. "Vicente should be here soon. Things will get better."

Gorgon mumbled something imperceptible and chopped more wood. Thindril touched her wound through the fabric of the bandage, wondering if it was better that day. Lucien was probably long gone, he had a thing about waking up early and get away when everyone was asleep. Thindril hated it, especially when he was going on dangerous missions like paying three murderers' bounty through devious ways.

"Look, the sun setting in the Jeralls…" Teinaava said, gazing at the mountains. "Look how the light touches the snow."

"That is beautiful… I wonder how it looks from up there." Thindril agreed.

"I don't like it that much, but I bet Taleandril would…" Gorgon sighed.

"You should try to get some sleep, Gorgon. I noticed that you barely slept last night. You just kept walking around." Teinaava said.

"I can't." He mumbled. Thindril sighed. She felt safe in there, but was longing for her return to the Sanctuary. Lucien had picked a great place to hide; they were surrounded by rocks that formed the foundation of the Jeralls and the mountain on one of the sides. There also had a thick forest around them, it was a matter of being quiet and they wouldn't attract curious eyes. Thindril was worried about the wild animals and creatures though, especially Ogres. Their home was a mile or two away from them, but those monsters still made her cringe.

The sun soon set down and everything was pitch black again. Thindril was sitting next to Teinaava, looking up to the stars. It was Frostfall now and they days were getting shorter and colder. The Jeralls were already getting whiter and there was a cold wind from the North. The pelts and a fire kept them warm, but it wouldn't be as easy if this had happened a month later.

"By Sithis, this place is incredibly hard to spot." Soft voice said while walking to them.

"Vicente!" Teinaava greeted while getting up and hugging him.

"You didn't take long to find us, though." Thindril laughed while getting up.

"No, sister, and you're wounded. Please, don't stand." Vicente said while walking to her.

"This is nothing. I'll soon be good again." She said while giving him a hug, not too tight though, her shoulder it still hurt.

"Vicente! How good to see you!" Gorgon said while patting his back. "How's everyone?"

"They are good, but they are quiet worried about you all. Do you know anything about Antoinette?" Vicente asked.

"No, we don't even know if she's still alive." Gorgon answered.

"That's not good news. Leonard was killed, wasn't he?"

"Right in front of me." Teinaava frowned.

"I'll mourn him. He was loyal and energetic man." Vicente sighed. "And you, Thindril, tell me about that arrow."

"It hit my shoulder. Lucien says it's not too bad and I actually feel fine except for the casual pain. Although… I must admit that when it hit me, I felt like I was dying." Thindril confessed.

"It's normal. Have you ever been hit by an arrow before?" Teinaava asked. "It gets better with time…"

"That's… nice… and no, I had never been hit by an arrow before. I am only here thanks to my brothers, if it wasn't for them I would had been killed or arrested." Thindril smiled.

"Whenever we can, we will always watch each others' back." Vicente nodded. "Remember this now, in this time of need. We must support each other and set aside our differences."

"Do you think Antoinette will be found?" Gorgon asked.

"I honestly have no idea. Antoinette may not be as skilled as most of us, but she is still a capable assassin and she knows how everything in the streets works." Vicente answered. "If she's alive, she is probably better hidden than you all here, waiting for the right time to run. Antoinette is a cunning fox."

"I sincerely hope that she's alright, even though we have our differences..." Teinaava said.

"Me too." Gorgon agreed.

"We all do." Vicente said while looking at Thindril, who simply looked away.

"How nice to see so many members of the family here reunited." Lucien appeared out of nowhere. He was grinning, so everyone assumed that he had good news.

"Seems I got here just in time." Vicente smiled while giving him a short nod.

"Yes, Vicente. It is done, the bounties have been paid and you are now free people." He paused. "But nobody knows a thing about Antoinette. She vanished. She became dust. I have no idea."

Thindril wondered if she should act like she was worried because she certainly wasn't. The plan was to bring the five members down and only two were gone. The other three escaped, and were now alive and well. Thindril didn't consider Antoinette a threat, neither to her life nor to her relationship with Lucien, but she was definitely one of the biggest nuisances in her world and her temper was short. Thindril was only patient when she knew that she would be able, sooner or later, to reach her goal, and killing Antoinette was not a reachable goal to her. There would be consequences, one of them would be to lose Lucien's love and respect and that would break her. The Wrath of Sithis sounded terrifying, of course, seeing her position diminished would be terrible too, especially when Thindril reached a relatively high position for someone who had been in the Sanctuary for less than a year. But Lucien's wrath was what she feared the most.

"Let's pray that she's hidden somewhere. That's all we can do." Vicente said.

"Yes…" Lucien agreed while sitting on a rock and grabbing one of the red apples that Teinaava had caught earlier. Gorgon started grabbing his things and getting ready to go. "We will not go yet, Gorgon." Lucien declared.

"Why?" He asked, slightly outraged.

"You are the only people that know that the bounty has been paid. Let us vanish for a little longer…" Lucien drawled. "Let our traitor wonder what became of us…"

"Lucien…" Gorgon mumbled while dropping his things. "I want you know that I am only doing this because I respect you."

"I know, my friend… I know… It will be worth it, I promise." Lucien smiled.

Thindril moved away from the small crowd and sat on a rock to treat her wound that was starting to bother her. The vampire followed her.

"I've brought something for you, sweet sister." Vicente's voice echoed behind her. He sat next to her and handed her a bottle.

"A healing potion?" She asked.

"Yes, but a powerful one. It will have some effects in your skin…" He smiled, showing his pointy teeth.

"What effects?" Thindril raised her eyebrow.

"I heard you hated having scars…" Vicente smirked.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!" Thindril said enthusiastically while hugging him. She felt someone's gaze on her too. Her red eyes soon met Lucien's. He didn't smile.


	19. Mind Games

"We should all stay together. We do not know if the traitor is watching us or not, or if he is around Cheydinhal. He will not approach us if we do not separate." Lucien commanded.

"Yes, that's a good idea. Are you all ready to go?" Vicente asked.

"Yes." Gorgon said while holding his enormous axe. He was clearly very anxious to go home.

Teinaava and Thindril stood next to him once they finished putting out the fire. Lucien gave one last look to the camp, checking if they had everything. "Good. We can move then." He nodded.

The group walked through the high trees that surrounded Cheydinhal. They moved fast and silently, not because they had to, but because it was already in them. Except ,perhaps, for Gorgon who tripped on a stone once in a while. It took them half a day to reach the city because they had to avoid the way through the mines. Those were now filled with goblins and there had been too many attacks for them to venture through those ways. It would be better for them to take a longer, but safer path.

They arrived in a time where the merchants were bringing the carts in and out of the city, making it relatively easy to go unnoticed. They walked as quickly as possible to the Sanctuary, using the ladder to go down to it and taking everyone by surprise.

"Oh! You're back! Thank Sithis! Telaendril! Antoinette! They're back!" Ocheeva cheered and proceeded to hug each of them. "I prayed so much for you all to return safely back home. The last days have been… horrible."

"You called Antoinette… Is she here?" Lucien asked.

"Yes, she returned last night." Ocheeva answered with a nod.

Suddenly their attention turned to Gorgon and Telaendril who embraced each other passionately. Antoinette appeared behind the Bosmer, smirking to them. "Hello, brothers and sisters…"

"How did you manage to return?" Lucien asked while walking to her.

"Oh, you know… I have my ways, brother." She replied.

"I am sure you do." Lucien smiled before turning to the group. Thindril didn't like it at all, but pretended to be busy hugging Telaendril.

"So now that everything has been taken care of, I suggest you to go back to your normal lives. Ocheeva, please give them the contracts. They have to be done. We cannot let anyone outside of the Brotherhood notice that something is wrong or else our reputation will be destroyed." Lucien ordered in his deep voice. "Now, I must take my leave." He said, giving a last look to Thindril before leaving.

"You heard our Speaker. Teinaava, I have something for you. Come, let's talk in my quarters." Ocheeva said.

"Yes, sister." He nodded before following her.

-T-

Everything was dark again. Dark and empty and gloomy. The ground beneath her was soft, but she could not see it. Suddenly, Thindril felt very cold and realized she was naked in the dark.

Unsure about what she should do, she started to walk slowly. Her main fear was to fall down or walk against something. Thindril heard nothing. The silence was massive and overwhelming. It almost broke her from within. She could feel it – she same despair as before. Thindril was again the Void.

"_**Walk faster."**_

She did as she was told. The fear of disobeying Sithis, especially in his realm, was greater than falling down or tripping.

"_**Stop now. Can you hear the river?"**_

She stared at the nothingness, at the empty blackness that surrounded her and tried to listen very hard.

"Yes, yes I do."

"_**Step closer and hear the true sound of despair."**_

Thindril walked carefully until she felt the cold water of the river touch her bare feet. Then she heard it. Screams of terror and cries for help came from the river. Suddenly, a faint grey light allowed the elf to see the it. In the dark waters she could see their distorted faces, their hands trying to crawl out of the river and escape. But there was no escape. They were offerings to the Dread Father and were bound to serve him. Someone was looking at her. Someone familiar. Thindril soon recognized it was her first husband.

She was about to scream, but suddenly someone pushed her.

"Wake up!"

Someone said, this time it wasn't Sithis. It was a woman, a mer actually. Telaendril was calling her while holding her arm.

"What?" Thindril grumbled, feeling her face too hot and the sweaty dripping off her. The nightmare had given her a fever, again.

"By Sithis, are you sick?" Telaendril asked, but she didn't give the Dunmer any time to answer. "Ocheeva wants to see you. Go quick."

Thindril dragged herself off the bed, still not all there. Her mind was heavy and so were her feet. Her shoulder hurt worse than the day before.

This was not going to be a good day.

"There you are, sweet sister! Oh… you don't look too well, did your shoulder get worse?" Ocheeva said once the elf made it to her quarters.

"That too, but the Void's Breath hit me again." Thindril murmured, remembering her deceased husband's face. She never regretted any of her deaths, but being haunted by their ghosts was something that she feared immensely.

"Again? Oh… you should see Vicente later then." Ocheeva recommended. "For now, sit down, I have a contract for you. It is urgent, but since you're not in your best days, you may carry it out tomorrow if you wish."

"I'm listening." Thindril nodded while rubbing her forehead.

"Your next target is a man named Roderick. He is sick, weak and dying. He is also heavily guarded by his men. What do you say?" The Argonian smiled.

"I say it's interesting. Tell me more." Thindril smiled back.

"Roderick was once a man respected by his fellow bandits – a leader. He is now sick. Normally the bandits would have taken care of him, but would also have chosen another leader. These bandits are different, though. They take care of him and hope that somehow he will heal and come back to life." Ocheeva explained.

"Those guys are better people than I thought." Thindril noted.

"Perhaps." Ocheeva nodded. "But someone wants him dead, you see." She said while handing her a bottle. "This bottle contains one most deadly fluids created by mer and men. You must infiltrate the fort near Anvil and switch the medicine for this. Here, I will mark it on your map."

"Hmm, sounds easy, but challenging at the same time."

"Yes, you have already infiltrated the Imperial Prison, that's why we picked you for this contract." Ocheeva told her. "Thindril... You are not allowed to be seen." She said while holding her arm.

"No one will see me. In the end, I was never there." The elf reassured while a small smirk.

Ocheeva smirked back.

"_Good."_

-T-

"That has always been your favorite book."

"Huh? Oh, hello Antoinette." Vicente said, still slightly aloof.

"Did I just catch a vampire out of his guard?" She smiled.

"Do you need anything, Antoinette?" He sighed. Vicente knew he needed to be patient with her for he had lost his temper with the little Breton too many times. The Vampire didn't wish to have his image stained inside the Sanctuary thanks to her. He was far too old and far too wise to let that happen.

"Oh, I just need to tell you something really quick." Antoinette said. "Do you mind if I sit with you?"

"No I don't, take a seat." Vicente answered, now truly interested in what she had to say. Antoinette's behavior was unusual. He knew that whatever she was about to tell him, it would be something out of the ordinary.

"I never apologized by the way I treated you in the past... I can now see how imprudent and frivolous my behavior was. I wish we could become friends actually... What do you say?"

Antoinette was being really nice - the type of nice that she used to be to Lucien when she arrived in the Sanctuary. Her bubbly smile... Her shiny blue eyes... Vicente knew what she was trying to do. He knew her too well to be oblivious to her behavior.

"Oh... Of course, sweet sister." The Vampire answered with a smile, showing his fangs.


	20. Bad Reputation

**Hello! In the next chapters we will see a lot more of Lucien. I will also change a few aspects of the other quests to make the storyline more interesting and Vicente will come out with a few surprises. I've been planning in my mind some major aspects of the Skyrim's sequel, if you have any suggestions or ideas feel free to discuss them :) thank you so much your support and reviews! Any kind of feedback is great and I love to hear your thoughts on the story! Stay tuned!**

-T-

Switching the medicine for the poison wasn't an easy task, but Thindril ended up succeeding despite all adversities. She had almost been caught twice and in both times her heart almost froze in fear. The elf was not scared of the confrontation itself, but about failing her superiors' expectations. In the last contract Antoinette had returned safe and sound while Thindril ended up with an arrow stuck in her shoulder. She was almost fine now and the pain barely bothered her, but still, her pride was wounded. Her competition with Antoinette was getting tighter, but Thindril still found herself to be far better than the Breton could ever dream to be. She tried to not let her own arrogance blind her, but the truth was that she had achieved far more than Antoinette did in less time. There was nothing wrong in wanting to keep her reputation, right?

The skies were darkening. Thindril had taken more time than usual for she avoided walking past Kvatch or even go near the road that leaded to the farm where she stayed after the disaster. Lucien stopped asking her about it. He probably came to the conclusion that Thindril would never speak openly about this terrible memory and stopped insisting on it. The Dunmer could only be thankful.

Cheydinhal was half a day way. There was an inn North of the Imperial City. Thindril thought it would be better to spend the night there because there were rumors of Necromancers lurking in the roads around the city. Those people gave her the creeps. She hated them with a passion and the worst was that most travelers said their numbers had grown a lot lately. The roads were getting so dangerous that Thindril feared that one day the danger in her job would not be in the target or in getting caught, but in her travels.

She rented a room for ten gold and soon found her head laying on a soft pillow. The elf fell in a deep sleep before having time for her next thought.

-T-

Vicente rocked his hips one last time before reaching his point. He hadn't felt like this in so many years. His last woman had been Sabrina and since her betrayal, Vicente found himself drown in the deep waters of solitude. Since he had never been keen of meaningless affairs and fake love promises, the Vampire took his time pondering if he should or not play Antoinette's game. She thought she was using him against Lucien and Thindril. How dumb of her to not realize that it was the other way around.

"Gods... If I only imagined that you were like this..." She whispered while panting. "I would have stopped caring for Lucien long ago."

"Better late than never, right dear?" He smiled while laying next to her. The tips of his fingers were circling her pink nipple.

"Right." She grinned. "You've been alone for long, haven't you?"

"Yes." Vicente nodded. "At first it was hard, but then it was quite pleasant, actually. Anyways, that time is gone now."

The Breton chuckled. "I always had a thing for you, you know? You being older and all..."

"And yet, you put so much garlic in our food." He noted with a small smile.

"Oh, I guess I was trying to grab your attention!"

They both laughed. Antoinette faked so well that Vicente almost believed her. Even if her feelings were true, Vicente's intentions would never become honorable. He had lived long enough to know what he wanted and what he didn't want. Antoinette was cunning, yes, but she was too young to play this game. Perhaps she could have had a chance if she had been a little older and more experienced. At the moment, she was merely a pitiful soul with a nice and soft body that Vicente happened to like. He had missed women and their touch. Antoinette had the plus of being a good lover, even if her personality annoyed him from time to time. Vicente didn't mind. After all, he didn't plan going like this for long.

-T-

He watched her sleep, waiting patiently for her eyelids to open and for her mouth to welcome him with a smile and then a kiss. Lucien Lachance was a stalker and a pretty good one. Luckily Thindril never minded being under his watchful eye. He always knew where she was, what she was doing and with who she spoke with. Thindril didn't know that he was aware of all these details, of course. Lucien was a flawed man and being a possessive control freak was part of it, especially when his life didn't go the way he wanted.

He brushed the red hair out of her face with his fingers. Lucien then traced her jaw line gently, eager to wake her up but without wanting to disturb her at the same time.

"Lay down." She whispered, barely moving her lips.

Her sudden words took him by surprise, but he obliged.

"How long have you been awake?" He asked.

"I don't know, long enough I suppose." Thindril whispered, moving her head to his chest. "Did you even get some sleep?"

"No." He answered while running her fingers through her long hair.

"Then do it now."

"I have things to do." Lucien replied.

"Yes, but you look like a zombie. In such shape, you won't be useful to anyone." She whispered back before kissing his jaw. "Sleep, my love."

"I can't."

"You can't?"

"I came here... I needed to see you. I thought that would give me some peace, and it did... But I cannot sleep yet." He explained.

"What happened?" Thindril asked, more clearly with her eyes now open.

"I cannot tell you. Black Hand business." Lucien sighed.

"Uhhh." Thindril just narrowed her eyes, Lucien was glad that she asked no further questions. He couldn't tell her even if he wanted and neither had he the will to explain what was truly happening behind the scenes.

"But things will be fine, you and me will be fine. We will be together. That is the most important thing to me." Lucien said carefully to not give away any details about his meetings with the Black Hand.

"Really? That's the most important thing to you?" She asked.

"Yes... Why are you so surprised?" Lucien asked back, wondering if he had said anything wrong.

"Nothing, I just wasn't expecting you to say that. I liked it, though." Thindril said with a sleepy smile. Lucien managed to smile back and kept stroking her hair gently.

"How old are you?"

"Huh?" Lucien blinked.

"How old are you? You know so much about me, I don't even know your age or your birthday or... anything at all." Thindril sighed. "I know that there are things you can't tell me. I understand... But I'm so curious." She smiled.

"I wish I could tell you everything without having to do so." Lucien sighed. "And by that I mean that I do not feel comfortable talking about myself. It is something that I never do, you see. Vicente is the person who knows me best, I do not have to talk to him for him to know what I am feeling." Lucien paused, not know what he should say next. "I am thirty-seven years old." He mumbled.

"I am fifty." Thindril grinned. "The perks of being an elf... Time sometimes passes and doesn't really touch us."

"Fifty?" He raised his eyebrows. "Really? I've seen younger elves looking older."

"It kind of depends of your genes and what you go through, we the Dunmer age differently. I can't really explain it. The last time I saw my brother he also looked much older than he really was, then again, he unlike me wasn't living a life of luxury." Thindril sighed while tracing the back of his hand with the tip of her fingers.

"Your brother?" Lucien asked. "I did not know you had a brother."

Thindril nodded. "He was a skooma addict and then, out of nowhere, he stopped being addicted and became a priest of Azura. He said she cured him. He looked happy the last time I saw him."

"Nobody stops being a skooma addict."

"That was what I thought until I saw him." Thindril shrugged. "But what about you? Did you have any siblings?"

"No, I did not. I was the only child." Lucien answered.

"Where were you born?"

Lucien smiled before chuckling lightly. "Morrowind."

"Seriously?" Thindril asked while raising her eyebrows.

"Yes, seriously."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Thindril asked while hitting him gently with a pillow.

"I told you I usually do not tell people these kinds of things..." He answered. "Besides no one ever needs to know where I was born or how old I am."

"What city were you born in? When did you leave?"

"Blacklight. I do not know why I left. My family and I were attacked by wolves while on the road. They died, I think. Vicente rescued me, he was the head of the local Sanctuary at the time. I was raised by him." Lucien told her while holding her in his strong arms. "He took me to the Sanctuary and raised me to be a killer. He was patient to me, but I never saw him as my father. To me Vicente is more like an elder brother in whom I absolutely trust. I travelled all around Morrowind, Skyrim, High Rock, Cyrodiil and Valenwood with him. He showed me the world."

"Oh, I had no idea. I mean, I could tell that you were good friends but I thought it was all." Thindril confessed.

"Vicente raised me and I raised Teinaava and Ocheeva since they were hatchlings. We are indeed a family in every sense of the word, except of course when it comes to blood. But our ties are stronger than blood. How many families that are related by blood hate each other? We do not do that. There might have been some disagreements like the ones that you and Antoinette have, but we support each other and we survive together. That's what matters." Lucien finished talking and Thindril remained quiet. He barely knew that she was in a constant competition with Antoinette in the unhealthiest way possible. It would be better for him to not know about that. Lucien had already so much to worry about, besides, no one likes an insecure woman. "If Vicente is so experienced, then why isn't he part of the Black Hand?" Thindril finally asked.

"He was part of the Black Hand once, but this is a tiring job, especially when you are supposedly immortal. He is now enjoying his holidays. It is a shame, actually. We need him more than ever." Lucien explained.

"Oh, I could never imagine... But I guess that explains a lot." Thindril said.

"It is good that you never imagined such thing - that means we are doing our job right." Lucien gave her a faint smile. He looked really tired now, his eyes were half closed and he was speaking slower than usual.

"Yes, you have." Thindril smiled. "You now deserve your rest, though, we can continue this talk later."

"Yes, I could definitely use some sleep now." He whispered, with his eyes already closed while turning to Thindril.

"It is still dawn. We have time." Thindril replied. "Sleep well, love." She whispered before kissing his forehead.

"_You too, my love."_


	21. A Greater War

**Greetings brothers and sisters, there are a few things that I'd like to address in this chapter. Firstly, I'm going to make the event that you are about to read here much bigger in this story than it was in game. It was interesting for me to write about it and I hope it will be interesting for you to read. Secondly, I'd like you thank you all for your wonderful support. Every review, every follow and every favorite. You guys are awesome. Enjoy the read!**

-T-

Lucien was depressed, yet he could not show it to anyone, except perhaps J'Ghasta. He was only member of the Black Hand that was actually his friend and that Lucien felt comfortable to be around with. Arquen was a snobby elf who clearly resented Ungolim for being the Listener, Ungolim was quite incompetent. He tried to be a true leader, but he failed miserably. Nobody respected him behind his back. Alval Uvani was another arrogant brat. Belisarius Arius was a good man compared to the ones already mentioned, but he needed a backbone. Banus Alor had always his mind up in the clouds and used too many adjectives to Lucien's taste and Mathieu Bellamont was far too wicked, even for an assassin. He was quite a nice fellow most of the time, but there was something about his smile that made Lucien uneasy. He never showed that, of course. Lucien was the kind of man that even when intimidated, he'd put up his best smirk and rip apart the person's neck or confidence. Sometimes, it didn't matter.

"Love... wake up..." He whispered while kissing her forehead.

Thindril groaned something and snuggled with him, interlacing their legs. He smiled. "We must go now."

"Why?" She groaned again, hiding her face against his chest.

"It's three o'clock in the afternoon." He replied.

"Ugh, alright." Thindril grumbled before sitting up on the bed and rub her eyes.

"Thank you." He said while putt his robes back on.

"Why?" The elf blinked.

"For this." He didn't wish to go in dept and make a speech about how happy she made him. Lucien was good with words, but not with feelings. He'd mix up things if he tried. Lucien just hoped that she knew that he loved her and that she was important. Thindril smiled and nodded before kissing his lips. That meant a yes, he thought. He could only hope that she loved him back in the same way. It was hard to tell with her background, but Lucien hoped that she put her past behind. Thindril looked happy and he was happy too. That's what mattered to him.

The innkeeper found it strange to see two people coming down when she rented the room to only one person, but kept it to herself. Lucien and Thindril left the inn and head northeast to Cheydinhal. They moved quickly and quietly. When the road was empty, they sometimes held hands and walked in silence, enjoying the view and the wonderful climate of Cyrodiil. If anyone saw them, they would look like a normal couple taking a strolls outside the walls. Normality was a word that despite all adversities, was slowly becoming part of their vocabulary and their minds. Thindril sometimes became afraid that somehow their love would just vanish, that it was all an illusion or even worse, that one of them got killed. In the end the elf tried to push those thoughts away for it was never healthy to dwell in bad thoughts.

Their peace was only disturbed by a strange and big light near Cheydinhal, it looked like the forest was burning at first, but when the couple came closer they saw that it was a gate to Oblivion instead.

Lucien frowned but remained quiet. Thindril firstly watched his expression but also wanted to know what was crossing his mind. "Do you think we should talk to the guards or is that too stupid?" She asked after their brief silence. "The Sanctuary might be in danger..."

"We will check the situation. Then we will see what we do." Lucien answered and the elf nodded.

Both of them walked to the gate, other citizens of Cheydinhal were there too. Some were protesting, some were scared and some were ready to fight.

"Be strong! Be strong, people of Cheydinhal!" The son of the Count, Farwil Indarys, screamed at the top of his lungs. "We, will defeat this evil! We will..." Suddenly the Deadra appeared out of the gate, making many people jump and Farwil to stop his speech and fight. The soldiers took care of the Scamps and Clannfears in an effective way, but that didn't stop Thindril and more citizens from frowning to their sight.

"Ugh, I don't like being here. It brings me bad memories." She muttered.

"Me neither, but we have to check if the city is safe enough." Lucien replied before holding her hand and squeezing it gently for a brief moment.

"As I was saying..." continued Farwil, slightly out of breath. "We will kill whatever comes from that gate! We will not let Cheydinhal fall! "

"My Lord, shouldn't we lead all this people back into the city? It can't be dangerous..."

"How dare you to interrupt me?" Farwil yelled. "Again... We will defeat whatever comes from that gate and close it forever!"

The soldiers cheered and half of them started heading into the Gate. The other half started leading the people to the city. "Excuse me, soldier." Lucien started "Isn't it too dangerous to stay in the city? Shouldn't we evacuate it?"

"Go back to your homes, but pack your things. We might have to leave soon if things don't turn around well." The soldier paused. "You didn't hear this from me though." He finished.

Lucien and Thindril exchanged looks before the sudden thunder caught their attention. Thindril trembled and started to walk faster. "Was the sky always like this? Was it turning red?" Lucien asked.

"It was completely red when they attacked and it was thundering loud. It was something out of a nightmare." Thindril answered with a nervous tone.

"My dear, nothing will hurt you. I can promise that you will not have to go through the same horror twice..." He said while putting his arm around her.

"I know your intentions are good, Lucien, but don't promise me that. You can't control the gates or whatever comes out of them."

He sighed and remained quiet. Going down the ladder with so many people running around would normally attract attention, but a chameleon spell that Lucien casted helped them to stay unnoticed. There were people that were just wandering aimlessly without knowing what to do and starting to panic. The guard soon established a curfew and did not allow anyone to leave the city. That would be especially bad for the Sanctuary. Unless they found a secret way in and out of the city, business would have to shut down temporarily.

"Ocheeva! Ocheeva!" Lucien called once they were inside. Ocheeva came out of her quarters, looking slightly scared.

"Lucien? What happened? Is everything okay?" She asked.

"No, an Oblivion gate opened right outside the city's walls. They are establishing a curfew and not letting anyone out of the city, is everyone here?"

"Yes, actually. Teinaava arrived just this morning and the others arrived last night. Their targets lived relatively close." Ocheeva answered. "But are we heading out, somehow? Or should we stay here? The Sanctuary should be safe..."

"It is safer being here and being in a house, yes." He agreed. "But we have to be ready, tell everyone to gather here in the common room. I have instructions to give." Lucien ordered.

"Yes, my Speaker." Ocheeva nodded before heading to the quarters.

"Are you going to stay here?" Thindril asked. "Is there a bed for you?"

"Yes, there is a secret room only destined for Speakers or the Listener. It is next to Vicente's. I will spend the night here, I could sneak out of the city if I wanted, but I will feel better if I stay here." Lucien whispered.

The other members of the Sanctuary soon entered the common room, some of them – Antoinette, Teinaava and Telaendril – looked like they had just come out of the bed.

"I am sorry for disturbing you, I know that many of you are exhausted from what has been happening in the past few days." Lucien started. "But something unexpected happened – an Oblivion Gate opened right outside Cheydinhal's walls."

Teinaava frowned, Antoinette gasped and Telaendril looked away. Only Vicente, M'raaj-Dar and Ocheeva remained calm.

"What are we waiting for, then?" Gorgon asked while getting up and holding his big Orcish ax. "We either prepare our defense or we flee. I vote on the first one. I do miss a good bludgeoning."

"We _have_ to prepare our defense." Lucien said. "They are not letting in and out of the city. One or two of us could sneak out, but we could not take the whole group. We are too many." He told them. "We will make shifts. No one leaves the Sanctuary except for Antoinette, Teinaava, M'raaj-Dar and Telaendril." Lucien turned to them. "You will work in pairs, but you cannot be seen together, as you should remember. Tomorrow you will go outside, ask the guards and the townspeople if everything is alright and make sure they are not lying, also, bring as much food as you can." He explained before turning to the others. "Now you all will stay here. We will make shifts. I don't want the whole Sanctuary to be asleep at the same time. Gorgon and Vicente, lock and barricade the front door. Only the ladder will be used." Lucien commanded.

"Who will start?" Thindril asked.

"Ocheeva will, unless you feel too tired? I do not know how your day was." Lucien suggested.

"No, I can do it." Ocheeva nodded.

"Good, then it will be Gorgon's turn, then my turn. At night it will be Vicente's since he will be up anyway and your will be next, Thindril. If anything happens, please remember that Sam guards these walls for a reason." Lucien told them before gazing to the skeleton. He was later nicknamed Sam and was rarely seen as dangerous for it was rumored that he never had to fight. Thindril often avoided being around him, his bones cracked too often for her taste.

"And how long these shifts will last?" Ocheeva asked.

"Five hours seem fair to you?" Lucien suggested.

"Yes." Ocheeva nodded.

"The front door of the house is locked and barricaded, we also covered the hole that leads to Sanctuary and put that shelf in front of the portal." Gorgon informed.

"Good work." Lucien nodded.

"How is it outside? Is it too bad?" Vicente asked.

"Not yet, but there is indeed a chance that Cheydinhal might end up destroyed like Kvatch. We are lucky enough to be located near the opposite gate, but still..." Lucien sighed. "There are Deadra coming out of the Gate, you see."

"Uh. Charming." Vicente replied. "We shall keep our watch then."

"Me and Antoinette are going to prepare ourselves for tomorrow." Telaendril said.

"Good." Lucien nodded. "Remember, we must be discreet."

"Don't worry, my Speaker. We will not blow our covers." Antoinette said before leaving to the quarters.

"Thindril, may I have word with you? It will be quick." The Bosmer whispered after Antoinette left. Thindril nodded and headed to the training room that would be empty at the time.

"I thought you'd like to know this." She started. "You might want to sit."

"You are scaring me." Thindril said while sitting on a chair.

"Vicente and Antoinette are together."

"_What?_" The Dunmer jumped on her seat, quite outraged.

"I know." Telaendril nodded.

"Seriously? How did that even happen?" Thindril asked rhetorically while shaking her head. "by Sithis, I'm disappointed with him, but oh well, that is his life. I don't want to poke around..."

"He's probably just feeling lonely." The Bosmer suggested.

"Probably. I don't like this, though. Something's not right. Antoinette is up to something." Thindril frowned.

"I am absolutely sure of that as well. Stay vigilant." Telaendril advised.

"I will. Thank you, Telaendril. You've been a good friend."


	22. Revelations

"Tonight, you will sleep with me." Lucien whispered to her ear while wrapping his arm around her.

"I would like that very much." Thindril answered, leaning to his touch.

Lucien gave her a small smirk before kissing her lips. Since the appearance of the Oblivion Gate, most members of the Sanctuary had been scared and bored. There was nothing to do except reading, training and fearing the worst. At least Thindril and Lucien had something to help them to keep their minds off.

She didn't know yet if what Telaendril told her was true or not. Thindril tried to watch out for any signs, but it was difficult because Antoinette was rarely in seen the Sanctuary now. She also hadn't told anything to Lucien. Firstly, the Dunmer didn't wish to spread rumors and secondly, what if Lucien got jealous of them? It was a silly thought, but Thindril wasn't willing to take any risks. She would keep it quiet for now.

Thindril casted a weak fire spell to light up the fireplace. The fireplace had some kind of system that would lead the smoke to the neighbor's chimney. The owner said it was strange for his chimney to let out smoke when he wasn't using the fireplace and that originated a rumor that his place was haunted. Everyone in the Sanctuary had a huge laugh thanks to that story. At moment, since most people remained in their homes, no one would notice anything unusual.

She laid on the bed next to Lucien and closed her eyes for a minute. Thindril had been up for almost a day and she was quite tired.

"This is will be over soon dear, I know you are tired, but this cannot go on forever." Lucien said.

"I know." She leaned on his shoulder. "At least you're here with me."

He caressed her long red hair before kissing her neck. Thindril leaned against him and started to work on his shirt, unbuttoning it and then touching a few inches of bare skin.

"I missed you." He whispered before nibbling on her ear. "We barely had any time for us."

"Hmm, I know." Thindril answered before getting rid of this shirt. "Let's hope they don't attack now." She chuckled.

"Yes, that would be terrible." He smiled while stripping her off. Her armor was soon on the floor and his hands were working on her underwear. Thindril kicked off his shoes before taking his pants off and wrapping her legs around his waist.

"Hungry, huh?" Lucien breathed before kissing her collar bone.

Thindril smiled and was about to reply before her thoughts were interrupted by his lips on her nipple. Lucien rolled his tongue against it before nibbling hard on the other.

"You're terrible." She breathed. Lucien chuckled before making his way down to her stomach and then her slit. Thindril moaned when she felt his lips touch her down there. His hands spread her legs before fingering her as well. The elf shuddered and moaned more. "I am not terrible, love, I am just giving you the treatment you deserve." Lucien finally replied before slapping her butt hard and going back to pleasuring her. His actions made Thindril groaned louder and louder. Lucien's dark eyes watched her, learning what made her tick. He soon found the right spot and continued to stimulate her until he made her come.

Thindril on the other hand was in paradise. She moaned and gasped, perhaps too loud, while reaching her peak. The elf still had time to look him in his eyes before doing so. Lucien looked rather pleased with his job and showed her that by giving her his signature smirk. The Dunmer didn't allow herself to take a rest - she grabbed him by his shoulders and turned him around. The Speaker was surprised by her sudden actions, but went along. Her long, thin fingers first grabbed his neck before kissing him passionately. The elf then bit his nipple gently before digging her nails into his shoulders. Lucien gasped in a mixture of pain and pleasure. The Speaker was not a gentle lover - he loved being hurt during and he loved to hurt her as well.

She then took him in her mouth, making Lucien groan at her sudden move. His hand moved to her head and gripped her hair gently as she started to suck him. His head was in such frenzy that Lucien just leaned back on the pillow and closed his eyes. His little distraction got him out of guard when Thindril straddled him. The Elf put his hands on her hips before guiding him in and finally making them both groan now. Lucien wasn't used to not being on top, but at the moment he found that position to be quite pleasing. His big hands grasped every inch of skin that he could touch and followed her rhythm. Thindril on the other hand was enjoying the view – having Lucien at her mercy was nice for a change. She bounced, every movement sending waves of pleasure through their bodies. Her back arched and she interlaced her fingers with his when she realized it wouldn't take them long to come. The couple soon found themselves moaning louder than they should and shuddering at the pleasure felt at the time. Thindril collapsed next to him, trying to catch her breath. Silence took them for a few seconds.

"Thindril, I have been worried about something..." Lucien said once he caught his breath.

"Yes, love?"

"What if I get you pregnant?"

"Oh that..." Thindril sighed while turning around. "Don't worry about that. You will never get me pregnant."

"How so?" Lucien narrowed his eyes.

"I can't have children." She confessed. "Come on. Five marriages, and no kids. Isn't that suspicious?"

"I thought that you just had commitment issues." Lucien replied, he was caught out of guard. Thindril almost thought that he was sad about it by his reaction.

"No, not at all." Thindril told him. "I am as infertile as the desert, or a wasteland or whatever." She shrugged. "It is not all bad, you know. I would never be able to kill my child's father, I think, unless I had to protect both of us."

"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked.

"You don't tell me everything either." Thindril replied. "I don't know, I just got used to not talk about this. It is not good for a woman to admit such thing."

"Oh, I see." Lucien said with a small nod. "Was it too hard for you?"

Thindril looked away to the fireplace and shrugged. "It is fine now. It was the first sign that I would never have a normal the killing started and you know the rest..."

"Why did you kill them? Was it just a habit or did they treat you wrong?" Lucien asked.

"For many reasons, either I got simply bored of him, either he used me for his sick experiments, either he cheated on me..." Thindril explain, still avoiding his gaze.

"Who used you for experiments?" Lucien asked, outraged.

"My fourth husband. He was a very powerful mage." She whispered before wrinkling her nose. "I don't want to talk about it." Thindril turned, pulling the sheets to cover her.

"Well... if one day you wish to tell me everything, you can do so." He said while putting his arm around her.

"I know, love, I know... and I hope you know that you can do the same." Thindril whispered while leaning to his touch.

"Yes, I do." He whispered back. They both cuddled and quickly fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

-T-

"Great people of Cheydinhal!" Farwil bawled at the crowd. His voice was weak, his skin was dirty and his sword had dark blood dripping of it. "On this day, the Deadra troops tried to conquer our great city. They did not know how mighty and brave our soldiers were. Today we showed those demons what men and mer are made of! Today we fought them off! Today Cheydinhal remains strong once again! I tell you this, we will not let this city fall! You have my word! For Cheydinhal!"

The crowd cheered at his dreadful speech and once it was over, Farwil hurried to sit down on a rock and clean his sword. He was not tired - he was exhausted.

"We cannot go on like this, sire." One of his knights said.

"I know, I know." The Dunmer uttered. This was nothing like he faced before, Farwil almost died that day and the day before. He lost too many men to keep this façade going. Cheydinhal would be lost in a matter of days.

"Perhaps we should let the people go..." The knight suggested.

"No." Farwil said abruptly. "Never! That would be admitting defeat! No way!"

The knight shuddered. "I apologize for suggesting such thing then."

"We will win, soldier. You must believe that." Farwil told him, almost commanding him to believe in such thing.

"Yes, sir." The Imperial said, unsure.

"We will win..." Farwil muttered.


End file.
